


Debt Collection (or, Payback)

by SquirrelNo2



Series: Instrument of Chaos [3]
Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV 2020)
Genre: Multi, Possession, Time travel aftermath
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-07
Updated: 2020-10-21
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:20:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 29,286
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26869573
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SquirrelNo2/pseuds/SquirrelNo2
Summary: The kids are home, the timeline is mostly familiar, and in a nicer world the biggest issue awaiting them would be romantic drama. Unfortunately, the latest flavour of romantic drama is "My boyfriend's soul belongs to an evil ghost" and Caleb has far more power over Julie and her friends than anybody, other than Caleb himself, is comfortable with.
Relationships: Alex Mercer/Willie (Julie and The Phantoms), Julie Molina/Luke Patterson/Reggie Peters
Series: Instrument of Chaos [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1953958
Comments: 420
Kudos: 359





	1. In the Company

**Author's Note:**

> Ok, here it is! The first chapter of the real full-length sequel!  
> Remember yesterday when I said I'd take some time in between? Yeah, when I started Phantom Singular I also said I wouldn't have a regular update schedule. I should just... stop saying things.  
> I want to say I'll back my schedule off to every other day because I do have various other deadlines and projects and things, but also I have no self control. We'll see how tomorrow goes and I will use that as my template.  
> Also also, last thing: I apologise in advance. This one has far less time travelly goodness than the previous major installment, and it will probably get more intense. But! If we make it through this Caleb drama, we get to do all the fun AU/time travel stuff again!

It was 3 am. Flynn and Julie were sleeping on the couch in the studio, arms and legs tangled together. Ray had come down to check on them a few hours ago, and had supplied the girls with blankets and pillows when they asked to stay out for the night. Every now and then, one of the girls would shift and accidentally push a pillow off, and Alex was finding it harder and harder to keep his mouth shut when Reggie or Luke tenderly tucked them back in.

(He made the mistake of commenting on this to Willie, who spent ten minutes explaining to Alex in great detail why his face was unbearably sappy when he looked at his sleeping lifer friends. Alex eventually had to tug Willie off the back of the chair they occupied and into his lap just to get him to stop teasing. This naturally caused Luke and Reggie to start teasing them, but at least Alex was comfortable.)

Then Willie sat bolt upright. Alex tried not to wince as Willie’s tailbone dug into his thigh, but Willie noticed anyway and stood up.

“What’s wrong?” Alex asked quietly, though he didn’t even need to see Willie’s anguished expression to know what had happened.

“It’s Caleb, isn’t it?” Reggie said. One of the girls made a noise in her sleep, and the four ghosts froze, afraid of waking them up.

Luke jerked his head toward the door, and they all reconvened outside.

“Is there any way we can keep you from going?” Alex asked immediately.

“Alex,” Willie said softly. He took Alex’s hands. Alex’s brain helpfully provided the memory of the museum, when Willie had taken his hands to help lift the stone bench. He tightened his grip on Willie involuntarily.

“If I don’t go, he’ll just come here,” Willie said. “You’re all in enough danger from Caleb already. If I buy you time…”

“We can figure it out,” Luke said. “If Caleb doesn’t come after us for a little while, then we can figure out how Julie freed us and do the same for you.”

“He’s never given me his stamp, Luke,” Willie said. “Really owning somebody’s soul, that’s… a little different.”

“Just a little?” Reggie asked.

Willie shrugged, letting out a tiny laugh.

“I don’t know how different,” he said. “Nobody’s ever been freed from either one, before you three.”

“Before Julie,” Luke said. “I mean, she got rid of the stamp. She pulled us back from Caleb’s club. And she’s got that – that time travel connection to you now, too. If anyone can help you, Julie can.”

Willie smiled like he didn’t believe it.

“I hope you’re right,” he said. He looked at Alex, whose tongue felt thick and dry in his mouth. Ghosts didn’t breathe, but Alex was close to hyperventilating anyway.

“Be careful, ok?” Willie asked softly. “I didn’t do everything I’ve done for you, just so you could turn around and fall back in Caleb’s hands. Promise me you’ll try to stay safe, Alex. Please.”

Alex shook his head.

“No,” he said. “No, I – I can’t do that if you can’t promise me the same thing.”

Willie laughed again. It almost sounded genuine.

“I guess that’s fair,” he said. “I’ll try. Ok?”

“Ok,” Alex said, barely audible. Willie let go of his hands and stepped back. Alex held his gaze, wishing there was anything he could do beyond a useless promise.

Willie set his jaw, looking determined, but instead of poofing away like Alex expected he stepped right back up to Alex, even closer than before.

“Can I kiss you?” he asked.

“Uh.” Alex hadn’t thought about what he’d do if Willie asked that. Somehow, he hadn’t even thought Willie might ask that. Had he thought Willie might want to? Maybe, sometimes, but mostly in a fantasy sort of way, and now it was real and he’d been quiet for way too long and also were Luke and Reggie still there because that was really weird –

“I’m pretty sure that’s a yes, and we’re gonna go over here,” Reggie said.

“Dude!” Luke hissed as they hurried back into the studio. Willie and Alex were alone.

“Kinda running out of time here, hot dog,” Willie said with an attempt at a smile. “And I’d rather not take Reggie’s word for it.”

“Oh, god, sorry. Yes! I – yes. Please.”

 _Please?_ Now he sounded desperate. Alex didn’t really have time to beat himself up for that one, though, because Willie held his cheek gently and pulled him in for a kiss.

It was small, sweet, just two sets of cool, chapped lips pressing against each other. Alex didn’t have much kissing experience, but it felt good. He was more aware of Willie’s hand on his cheek, the way his other hand had curled around Alex’s arm, his hair brushing Alex’s skin, how close they were standing – the actual mouth connection barely registered when taken in with everything else about Willie.

Finally Willie pulled away.

“I can’t stay,” he said. “I’m sorry.”

“I know,” Alex said. “It’s not your fault. Just… come back home, ok?”

The most heartbreaking look of surprise crossed Willie’s face before he smiled and nodded.

“I’ll try,” he said again. Then he was gone.

The club was dark and empty when Willie got there. Most nights it was packed, even at this early hour of the morning, but the parties had been short and simple since Caleb disappeared after Julie and the Phantoms played the Orpheum. Willie appeared at the top of the staircase, where Caleb couldn’t accuse him of hiding, but he could still get a feeling for what he was walking into.

A couple other ghosts were milling about, cleaning up and setting up for the next day. Dante and Genevieve weren’t though, just standing to attention the way you had to when you were Caleb’s entourage for the night. Willie frowned. Caleb was nowhere to be seen, but there was a short, unfamiliar boy standing between the two ghosts.

“Don’t stand there all night, William,” the boy called.

Willie sucked in a breath like the words had hit him. He knew what this was. Caleb had possessed somebody only once in Willie’s time with him, and only briefly, but the younger ghost would always remember what it had been like. The wrongness in the way the lifer had held himself with Caleb in charge, the joy Caleb seemed to get out of doing things blatantly out of character while still unnoticed, and worst of all – the effect on the lifer when Caleb had been finished.

So who was this kid, Willie wondered as he moved mechanically toward Caleb, and what could he have that Caleb wanted? Some teenage lifer wouldn’t have made him mad enough to pull this for the fun and torture, except maybe…

This almost certainly had something to do with Julie.

“That’s… a new look, Caleb,” he said nervously.

“Save it, William,” Caleb said, and the tone coming out of this floppy-haired sixteen-year-old’s mouth would have been comical if Willie hadn’t had so much experience with that tone. Almost never directed at him, though, not until Alex. “You and I both know you wouldn’t have come if you had any other choice.”

“So why do you want me here?” Willie asked.

“I’m making sure you have no other choice,” Caleb said. “Congratulations. You’re in the company, on a permanent basis.” He patted Willie on the cheek.

“Remember to smile,” he said.


	2. It's Called Friendship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willie is gone, but he's been gone before, so his friends are trying not to worry too much. They might be starting to prepare for a ghost war, but at this point that just seems like a good precaution to take anyway.

The boys had tried to keep Willie’s departure quiet for all of two minutes when Flynn and Julie woke up Sunday morning, but all Julie had to do was look sad for a little bit and her ghostly bandmates were stumbling over themselves to explain where Willie had gone. Flynn actually had to explain to _Julie_ what the guys were saying, since she didn’t get the speech in anxious triple stereo.

“How are you holding up?” Julie asked an empty space that Flynn assumed was Alex.

Flynn waited a bit, then leaned over to Reggie.

“What’s he saying?”

“Uh, not much,” Reggie stage whispered. Flynn winced as Julie looked over at them. Clearly, asking Reggie was not a subtle move. “He just said he’s fine, but I don’t think I believe him,” Reggie continued, still way too loud.

“Ok, thanks,” Flynn said, patting him on the chest in dismissal. “Willie’s coming back, though, right? He has before.”

Reggie and Julie looked around, and Flynn imagined Alex and Luke were meeting their worried gazes with the same silent questions.

“We hope so,” Reggie said finally. He flopped down on the couch and tugged at the space next to him. Flynn, starting to grow used to these visual half-cuddles, was sure he’d just pulled Alex close. She wondered when Alex had sat down.

“We already wanted to get Willie free, right?” Julie said softly. “It’s going to be ok.” She stood next to Flynn, leaning into her space in a way that told her Julie needed more comfort than she was letting on. Flynn didn’t blame her.

“Yeah, we just gotta learn some more about ghosts,” Flynn said. “People talk about ghosts all the time. There’s got to be something useful out there.”

Reggie looked sceptical. Flynn wasn’t sure where he got off looking like that, since he’d definitely had worse plans.

“I’m sure that Caleb and Ava aren’t the only ghosts who know about this stuff,” Julie agreed, looking relieved. “There have to be so many ghosts out there, right?”

“Only other ghosts we’ve ever met were at the Hollywood Ghost Club,” Reggie said ruefully. “Even if any of them wanted to help us, they couldn’t.”

“Not with that attitude,” Flynn said. “We beat Caleb before! You did. I helped, kind of? I was moral support.”

“Excellent moral support,” Julie agreed with a smile.

“And now I’m part of the team, so you can all rest easy – if I sit here I’m not going to sit on anybody, am I?” Flynn pointed at the armchair.

“Alex is here, Luke’s right there,” Reggie said helpfully, pointing at the rest of the couch.

“Good.” Flynn sat dramatically, wishing she had some kind of cape or flowy dress to swish around her for effect. “So we’re going to find out about ghost magic, and we’re going to get Willie back, and also kick Caleb’s butt because he really deserves it.”

Reggie smiled.

“Good speech, Flynn,” Julie said. “Do you… have any ideas?”

Flynn coughed.

“Um. Maybe, like, the internet?”

“You mean the internet that told Carlos to banish us using salt?” Reggie asked. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, it was kind of funny when Alex freaked out over nothing, but the internet doesn’t have a great record.”

He jerked like something had smacked him. Probably Alex, actually.

“It’s also the internet that gave Carlos the idea ghosts were around in the first place,” Julie said. “The orbs, remember?”

“Oh yeah,” Reggie said.

“Look, I know it’s a long shot, but it’s all we have. Flynn’s right. Unless you want to sit and not do anything?”

“No!” Reggie burst out. By the look on Julie’s face – a little surprised, a little satisfied – Luke and Alex had probably done the same thing.

“Ok,” Julie said after a minute. “Then scoot over. We’ve got research to do.” She wriggled into a spot on the couch, presumably between Luke and Alex, and opened her laptop. Flynn pulled out her phone, ready for an intensive day of Googling.

By Monday, the girls hadn’t turned up much. Everything somebody on the internet said, somewhere else somebody said it was wrong. The most consistent results they turned up were connections to devils and demons, when they searched for soul stealing.

“And it’s not like I couldn’t have figured that out on my own,” Flynn said to Julie as they stood at her locker.

“I know,” Julie said, equally frustrated. She slammed her locker shut. “It’s like… you’d think stories would have more information about this? They’re supposed to be about the hero saving the day, right? The devil shouldn’t just… win.”

“Yeah, you want to fiddle for Willie’s soul? Because that’s about all I got,” Flynn said.

“I did tell Reggie I’d learn how,” Julie said.

“Wait, what? You said you’d learn an _instrument_ for that boy?” Flynn could not believe this was the first she was hearing of this.

“Yeah? It was a joke,” Julie said. “Sort of. He might have taken me seriously. We were talking about our hypothetical country album.”

Flynn still could not believe her ears, but at least it was an inside joke and not more of Julie’s weird music flirting. Reggie had already blurted some really awkward stuff trying to cover for his obvious crush. If Flynn had to deal with Julie daydreaming about two dead boys, she was going on strike.

“How long do you think we should wait before we get worried?” Flynn asked. It wasn’t a happy subject change, but it was weighing on her mind. She didn’t know a lot about Willie, really, and she wasn’t sure how often he’d been around before Caleb cracked down.

“I don’t know,” Julie said. “When Alex first met Willie, I know they hung out a lot. But then Willie wasn’t supposed to talk to Alex at all, between the club and the Orpheum.”

“I bet Caleb’s mad at him for all of that, too,” Flynn said. “But he wouldn’t _hurt_ Willie, would he? If Caleb’s whole thing is using people, then… Willie’s safe. He’s useful.” The idea left a bad taste in her mouth, but she didn't exactly have a lot to cling to. Flynn would take what she could get.

“I hope so,” Julie said. “I’m worried about him. And about Alex.”

“Reggie said he said he was fine,” Flynn said. “Which, I’m guessing, means he’s totally _not_. Was he convincing when he said it, or did you kind of feel like you were talking to a sad blonde raincloud?”

“Considering ‘fine’ was the only word I got out of him for a while,” Julie said. “Definitely a raincloud. He and Willie had a couple of times where they didn’t think they’d see each other again, but now… I don’t know. Maybe it was a bad idea, all of us hanging out. Like it just showed Alex what he’s missing with Willie gone.”

“Or it shows us all how much we need to get him back,” Flynn said. “He’s a fun guy. He’d probably be more fun if he didn’t belong to a demonic jerk magician. And even if they’re ghosts, we finally have more friends. I don’t want to lose that.”

Flynn felt a little uneasy as soon as she admitted that. They didn’t have many friends, and they both knew it; Julie could flit from social group to social group, especially now that she had some fame. Flynn, for all her love of the spotlight, didn’t always make a good impression one-on-one. She’d never needed to. Julie and Carrie, and then just Julie, had been the only people she needed to be vulnerable with.

But she had to admit, it was nice having the guys to depend on. She certainly wasn’t going to let any of them go without a fight, even if that fight was a little bigger than getting Julie back in the music program had been.

Julie wrapped her arm around Flynn’s shoulders, like she could guess where Flynn’s thoughts had gone.

“I know,” she said. “Me too.”

Flynn tilted her head, knocking it gently against Julie’s.

“Julie!”

The girls pulled apart as Nick approached, smiling.

“Hey, Nick,” Julie said.

“I was wondering if you wanted to… hang out sometime,” Nick said. He said ‘hang out’ with a weird emphasis. Flynn frowned. She had _not_ expected Nick to be the pushy type. Though, probably nobody could come across as pushy when their long-time girlfriend was Carrie Wilson.

“Oh… Look, Nick,” Julie said, as Flynn could _see_ her wondering how to let him down gently but firmly. “I really do like being your friend, but I’m just not…”

“No, I know,” Nick said. He smiled at her in an admittedly dashing way. Flynn couldn’t quite believe ‘dashing’ was in Nick’s repertoire. Mostly she’d figured he hung out in the range of ‘cute’ to ‘supportive.’ “But we should get together _as_ friends.”

“Oh! Oh, well,” Julie said, relief making her loud and awkward. Flynn committed herself to backing up whatever weird thing Julie said this time. “I love friends! Having them. I mean. You’re my friend, and I would like to keep being your friend.”

“Nice save,” Flynn muttered. Julie sent her a miniature death glare. As an apology, Flynn turned to Nick.

“She really does love having friends,” Flynn said, which wasn’t a lie, though it probably wasn’t helpful either.

“Wonderful,” Nick said, not even phased by the sheer level of awkward rising off the two girls. The bell rang, and he smiled at them – at Julie, really – before he left.

“Wonderful?” Flynn repeated. “He’s definitely trying to impress you.”

“Probably,” Julie said. “But he really is a nice guy.”

“Until just now, I’d have agreed,” Flynn said. “But that? That stank of true Nice Guy behaviour, not just a guy being nice.”

Julie frowned.

“I’m going to give him a chance,” she said. “But only one.”

“You didn’t even decide what you were going to do,” Flynn noticed. “What was his game plan?”

“Probably took less time in his head, because in his head I probably didn’t reject him,” Julie said.

“Yeah, have I mentioned that’s a warning sign?”

Julie’s expression was like a mild scolding as they sat down, pretending they were ready for the first class of the day. Just as their teacher stood up to start class, Flynn leaned over to Julie.

“Julie,” she hissed, horrified. “We spent the entire last week in an alternate universe and I have no idea what we’re supposed to have studied!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter's Flynn angst brought to you by her conviction that Julie will make new friends upon leaving the music program, but Flynn won't. Also, Julie and Flynn have known each other since childhood. Julie and Carrie have known each other since childhood. All three of them used to be best friends and this is canon.  
> (Someday. Someday I will let her see and talk to Luke and Alex, as teenagers, as ghosts, as people that are her friends. I swear.)  
> I guess we'll do an every day update again? Standard disclaimer that I may or may not get both Saturday and Friday chapters out, it might just be one for the two days, but also historically I have not needed that disclaimer so. We shall see.  
> Next up: sometimes the best research is first-hand observation. This becomes difficult when you are all known by the people you need to observe.


	3. People You Trust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some mlm/wlw solidarity for us all, right before terrible plans are laid.

It had been a week, a week spent frequenting libraries and weird corners of the internet and all of Willie’s favorite places. Luke knew who Justin Bieber was now. He had _not_ found Willie at the singer’s home, though, so it didn’t feel like much of a success.

Alex had been a little quieter than usual, moping around and practicing his drums longer and harder than was strictly necessary. He’d provided Luke with no less than twenty suggestions as to where Willie might be found.

”You could check again,” Alex said on Friday night. They hadn’t actually been talking about Willie just then and Luke figured if they were going to have this conversation now was the time.

”Dude,” Luke said. He’d been on the couch with Julie curled up under his arm, scrolling through one of her school’s databases looking for ghost folklore. When he sat up, Julie shut her laptop and watched Alex with sad eyes. “You know it’s a long shot. If Willie was allowed to wander LA, the first place he’d go would be somewhere he could see you.”

”He kissed me, Luke! I can’t let our first kiss be the last time -“ Alex broke off, staring at Julie like he’d never seen her before.

”Bro, you ok?” Reggie asked. He’d been oddly quiet that evening, too, and had mostly hung out with the plants beyond the piano. Luke was worried about him, too, but he had to take one crisis at a time.

”So I’m gay,” Alex blurted, which confused Luke until he realized Alex was still staring at Julie. A faint smile flickered across Julie’s face.

”Thank you for trusting me,” she said. “You know you don’t have to tell me things if you’re not ready to, right?”

”Yeah, well, what I already said - anyway, I know you guessed.” Alex looked sheepish.

”Guessing who a friend likes isn’t the same thing as being told who he is,” Julie said.

”Yeah,” Alex said. “I - thanks, Julie.” He tapped idly on the snare drum. “I’m sorry if you felt like I didn’t trust you.”

”No! I mean, it’s so hard to tell even people you trust, I know that, it’s not like I’ve ever told any of you I’m bisexual -“

Luke nearly fell off the couch. Thankfully, Julie was too preoccupied with her spur-of-the-moment speech to notice.

“I mean, I’ve really only told Flynn so far, and it’s not that I don’t think you’d all be cool with it, it’s just that sometimes you have to take time to make sure you’re ok inside yourself and you know for sure -“

”Julie,” Alex cut in softly.

She stopped talking. Luke reached out to her, and she let him pull her close again.

”Thanks,” Alex said.

”It’s better now,” Julie said earnestly. “Obviously, there’s still...” She sighed. “I can’t tell you everything is fine. But it is better now.”

”I know,” Alex said. He grinned teasingly at her. “You’re here.”

Luke wasn’t sure if he should say anything, since this was clearly an Alex-and-Julie moment, but he’d been listening and they all knew it. Anyway, it’d be weird later if he didn’t.

”Congratulations,” Luke said quietly.

”Yeah?” Julie said, obviously amused by his word choice.

”Yeah, it takes guts,” Luke said. “Especially saying you’re bisexual for the first time.”

 _Or the second,_ he added mentally, kicking himself for the awkward delivery.

As always, though, Julie was on the same wavelength.

”Personal experience?” she asked.

”Yeah,” Luke said. “I’m bisexual too.”

It was strange, as it had been the first time with the guys, how immediately the weight lifted. Unlike Alex, Luke’s fears had never lain with the aftermath; it was always the anticipation.

”Dude, you ok?” Alex asked. He was looking at Reggie, who was staring at Luke and Julie.

”Oh, yeah,” Reggie said. “Those two. Chemistry, am I right?”

Luke realized he’d been cuddling with Julie for over an hour, and pulled away from her slightly with a feeling of guilt.

”What are you doing over there, anyway?” Julie asked. “Come sit.”

Reggie looked at Luke, who grinned.

”Yeah bro, come on,” he said, just a little evilly. Reggie glared at him for a split second before he joined them.

“There sure are a lot of bisexual people in this band, huh,” Reggie commented. Julie snorted.

”Feeling outnumbered?” she asked playfully.

”No,” Reggie said. “Definitely not.”

Alex muttered something that was too quiet for Luke to catch, one hand on his forehead like he was shielding his eyes from them.

“I’m here, and ready to find Willie!” Flynn announced as she swung the doors wide open. Luke thought it might have been the first time Flynn’s entrance actually brought the mood down. She paused in front of the armchair.

”Anybody here?” she asked. Alex tapped out a halfhearted greeting on the drums as Julie reassured Flynn the chair was free.

”I guess from the sound of Alex we still haven’t found anything,” Flynn said as she pulled her laptop from her bag. The bag clanked as she set it down.

”Flynn, is that just full of soda?” Julie asked.

”What? It’s my thinking fuel,” Flynn said. “Anyway, I had an idea, but you’re not going to like it -“

”Caleb’s club,” Alex said suddenly. Luke, Julie, and Reggie all stared at him. Flynn paused.

”No,” Julie said. “We can’t even get in!”

”Who was it? What did he say?” Flynn asked.

”Alex wants to visit the club,” Julie said. “Which is a terrible idea.”

”Flynn was about to say it,” Alex said.

”Flynn never said anything about it!” Julie cried, exasperated. Luke and Reggie eyed each other and inches away from Julie just a bit. Angry Julie was intimidating.

”She’s right, I didn’t, I had a different bad idea. Why can’t we go to the club?” Flynn asked.

”Caleb _knows_ us. Who knows what he’ll do?”

”Look, just long enough to see if Willie’s there,” Alex said.

”Dude, I am _not_ going back there again,” Reggie said. “It was bad enough when Caleb didn’t know me.”

Flynn sighed.

”That’s fair,” she admitted. “But Reggie, you’re not the only one who could go!”

”No, none of us is going back there,” Luke cut in. “Losing more of us to Caleb isn’t going to help.”

Alex looked about to argue, but Flynn got there first, staring Julie down.

”Even when we time travellled, Caleb barely noticed me. I’m just your living friend to him.”

Julie shook her head.

”It’s too dangerous,” she said.

”It’s dangerous for Willie,” Alex said. Julie flinched. Luke swallowed.

”I’ll go with her,” he said.

”Flynn can’t even see you!” Julie protested. Flynn sat up straighter at the sound of her name.

”You’re not going,” Luke said. “Neither is Reggie. It’s me or Alex, and Caleb would expect Alex.”

He glanced at his friend, who nodded. Alex didn’t look happy, but he seemed to be ok with the solution.

”Luke...” Reggie said. Luke forced himself to look over at him. The other boy’s eyes were wide and teary.

”We know if I don’t go, Flynn and Alex are just gonna take off without telling us,” Luke said, trying for a brave smile.

”Right,” Reggie said. “Just. Dude, be careful.”

”We just got you back,” Julie added. They were holding each other’s hands so tightly Luke could see the blood not reach their knuckles. His chest felt achey and open.

”The instant something seems wrong, Flynn and I will get out of there,” Luke promised. He slipped to the floor to look at them better, and then they were pulling him up into a hug.

”Is it a plan?” Flynn asked when the three separated. It was the quietest Luke had ever heard her.

”Be careful,” Julie said, heading over to hug her.

”That’s hilarious, coming from you, but I will,” Flynn said. “You’d be lost without me.” She wrapped her arms around Julie, clinging to her with a desperation that betrayed her casual tone. Even after the hug broke, the two girls stood with their foreheads pressed together.

Alex finally crossed the room. He wrapped his arm around Luke as Reggie did the same on the other side. Luke gripped each of them on the shoulder and held them as close as he could while keeping his eyes on the girls.

”And I’ll take care of your ghost boyfriend,” Flynn said finally. “Talking about people who’d be lost without me.”

”Hey!” Luke protested on principle. It made Julie laugh, though, so he didn’t really mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I... did not expect this to be the chapter where half the characters just. Came out. Anyway you’re welcome. Some disaster bis up in here because I’m pan and I said so.  
> This update was far later than usual because I murdered my computer with tea yesterday which relegated me to writing in my notebook (lovely!) and typing it up on a touchscreen later (awful!) Until further notice, this may be the way of things. Also please let me know if you spot any typos or formatting weirdness since I hate hate hate this method of typing and I don’t edit it as well because my brain is spiteful like that. I promise it’s not weird if you tell me I missed a punctuation mark or something, I will love you forever.  
> Next up: Willie makes an appearance again. This is not the joyful thing it may sound like. Also, did anybody want a Flynn & Luke teamup because hello, you’re welcome.


	4. Suspicion City

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flynn and Luke did not plan well. They may often be the ones with plans, but that doesn’t mean they’re always good ones.

Flynn started up at the tall, imposing building. It wasn’t _unusual_ architecture here in rich people land, but it did hit different know there was a secret soul-stealing ghost club inside. Her nerves also weren’t helped by her attempt at a disguise, which meant a nice-but-tragically-boring dress she usually never wore, with her braids tied up, and an old pair of Julie’s glasses with the lenses popped out. It wouldn’t stand up to any scrutiny, especially from somebody who’d been up close to her like Caleb had, but she hoped it would throw him off enough that she could run out if he caught sight of her.

”Still there, right?” Flynn asked for the fourth time since they’d set out. There was a little tug on her purse strap, which Flynn assumed was an attempt at reassurance.

”Ok,” Flynn said. “Just have to walk in like I own the place. Always worked for Carrie.”

Of course, Carrie was a rich white girl with a famous father who might as well have owned half the places she’d been, but still. Flynn knew looking nervous was a one-way ticket to suspicion city.

A couple in nice clothes approached, laughing with each other. Flynn followed in their wake, breezing past the doorman in the same way they did. When she’d passed, she risked a glance back and was relieved to see the doorman shrug and lean against the wall. Thank god for that universal feeling of “I don’t get paid enough to deal with this.”

Flynn wasn’t sure how to find Caleb’s club, since the guys hadn’t been super clear on how to get there via walking. She kept trailing after the people she’d followed in until she felt a sharp tug on her purse strap.

Flynn turned the nearest corner as though she’d always meant to and then stopped, fumbling through her bag for the notebook and pen she’d brought.

”Please tell me you have ideas,” Flynn said as she passed them to Luke. “Or better yet, directions?”

_I could poof around, get my bearings?_

Flynn had to stare at the words for a minute before she managed to read them.

”Your handwriting is so bad,” Flynn said. “How does anybody read your lyrics?”

_Hey!_

That one Flynn understood.

”Look, where am I supposed to wait while you explore?” Flynn hissed. “I can’t stand here forever.”

There was a pause.

 _Bathroom?_ Luke suggested.

”I am not going to sit in a public bathroom in the freaking devil’s lair waiting for you to come back with directions!” Flynn exclaimed.

Two minutes and a weird argument later found Flynn sitting in a public bathroom, waiting for Luke to come back.

Luke popped frantically through the building, hoping for something familiar. The thing about teleportation was it was really cool up until you needed to get a lifer somewhere you’d never been without teleporting.

Finally he found something he recognized: the doorway through which he knew lay the landing where he and his friends had gotten their first look at the Hollywood Ghost Club.

Part of Luke was tempted to go alone, to look for Willie without Flynn ever getting involved. But part of him desperately didn’t want to go back alone, or at all, and Flynn was already in the building. Anyway, much as Luke wished she hadn’t said it, she was right: Caleb had the least interest in her, out of all their group.

Luke backed away from the ballroom, then turned and nearly sprinted down the hall, going just slowly enough to notice landmarks to help him and Flynn get back. When he reached the bathroom where he’d left Flynn, he paused.

He really hadn’t considered his need to signal her somehow. He couldn’t just go in! Luke looked around the hallway, then pressed his ear to the door. There was no sign of anybody, so he took a fortifying yet unnecessary breath and knocked.

It took maybe twenty seconds for Flynn to fling the door open.

”Hey!” Luke protested reflexively as the door went through him.

”Ok, this better be the right ghost,” Flynn said.

Luke hummed a few bars of “Great” and wished he’d though of that sooner.

”We probably could have thought this plan through better,” Flynn murmured.

”What - I - I did not come up with this! I said it was a bad idea!” If Luke’s voice hit a higher register in his indignation, nobody ever had to know.

”Come on, show me the way,” Flynn said. “If we don’t make it before the show ends then Caleb will definitely catch us.” She passed him the pen he’d used earlier, and he held it aloft as they hurried towards the ballroom.

Flynn paused before she entered.

”I know you’re just here to look out for me,” she said. “Because Julie would worry. But... are you really ok with this?”

This was the first time Luke had gone into the club knowing what it was, of his own free will.

He tugged on the strap of her purse, hoping she’d guess that was his temporary shorthand for yes.

”I really hope that was a yes,” Flynn muttered before she squared her shoulders and stepped through the doorway. Luke followed close behind, unwilling to let Flynn out of his sight in this place.

The show was in full swing, with Caleb front and center on stage as always. Thankfully, that meant nobody took note of their entrance, too absorbed in the admittedly awesome performance. Luke scanned the crowd, looking for Willie.

Flynn gasped, groping for Luke’s hand even though she’d already passed through it twice. Luke tapped her hand with the pen, and she gripped it tight.

”Flynn?” he said automatically.

”I don’t understand,” she said quietly. “Why is he dancing?”

If Luke had blood, it would have run cold. Willie was there in the company, not ten feet from Caleb, wearing one of those bright pink jackets.

Luke had seen Willie dance once before. He’d been staring at Alex most of the time, but even then it had been clear he could make that same connection to an audience that Luke was always craving. He smiled _out_.

Tonight, Willie’s smile stopped in his face. Muscularly, it was perfect. For what Luke knew of Willie, though, it was empty.

”So Caleb just puts him in the show like nothing happened?” Flynn hissed. Luke realized he and the others had never actually told the girls very much about the night they played the Orpheum. They hadn’t wanted to scare them. Clearly that worked out great.

As Luke tried to think of a way to tell her his suspicions, that Caleb was controlling Willie, Willie looked up. His eyes passed over Luke, who froze, and Flynn, who gasped.

Then he missed a step.

”We have to go,” Luke said. Caleb was watching Willie with a dark gaze even as he sang, and it was only a matter of time before he caught on to what had shocked Willie out of it. “Flynn - right, wonderful, she can’t _hear me._ ”

But Flynn had seen the same thing Luke did, apparently, because she whipped around and headed for the door.

”Come on,” she whispered. “Luke, if you’re not with me...”

He twisted the pen they both still held. Flynn took a shaky breath as they left the ballroom. She started to run for the exit, and Luke was happy to follow.

  
Flynn didn’t know if they’d avoided detection or Caleb just hadn’t thought them important enough, but she made it out. She finally came to a stop at the side of the road just out of view of the door.

”Ok,” she said. She gasped for air, unsure if she was panting or panicking. “That was _such_ a bad idea.”

She turned to ask Luke what they’d just seen, and the breath caught in her throat when she realized she only held the cap of the pen. They’d separated somewhere.

”Luke!” Flynn called as loud as she dared, trying to stay quiet even this far from the club. “Luke if you’re not here, Julie will kill me, and then she’ll be sad about it, and that will be your fault!”

The rest of the pen appeared out of nowhere to tap Flynn on the nose. Flynn scowled at the space Luke was probably in.

”Do that again and I will find a way to double kill you,” she said. Luke pulled the notebook from the top of her bag.

 _Julie would be mad_.

Flynn rolled her eyes.

”Do not use my own dramatic scenario against me,” she said. “What was up with Willie?”

The words appeared in slow, careful letters.

_Caleb controls ghosts. Makes them perform._

Flynn waited. Just when she decided to ask another question, Luke added something.

_He did it to us once._

“That why you weren’t at the Orpheum?” Flynn asked. She hadn’t pressed the subject, figuring Julie would have a good reason for forgiving the guys and they had shown up eventually. Now it wasn’t even their third most recent brush with danger. But knowing what had been happening while Flynn looked to Julie for permission to curse the band’s names...

To Flynn’s alarm and embarrassment, she started to cry. She was just one girl, and no matter what she did she couldn’t help her friends here. Not her best friend, and not her new ones. She’d probably messed everything up by backing Alex’s idea, and then she’d go back and the only idea left for Flynn to offer up was equally bad.

And she’d liked Willie. Even before they could communicate, he’d been funny, which was no easy feat. Now he was just some dancing ghost puppet.

Slowly, as Flynn’s tears changed from sobs to hiccups, she became aware of a quiet, wavering song.

”Please don’t cry,” it went. “I’ll probably cry because I can’t help you, and girls kind of scare me when they cry, and Julie will be mad that I made you cry -“

”You’re so full of yourself,” Flynn muttered, sniffling. “You couldn’t make me do anything.”

There was a laugh in Luke’s voice as he sang the next lines.

”Let’s go back, Flynn. Let’s go home.”

Flynn rubbed her face dry. She resolved never to mention to Luke that, although his words had been mildly ridiculous, the tune he’d invented had been properly comforting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: they know not to expect I’ll get a Saturday update as well as Friday, you’ve warned them and you told them about your computer  
> Also me: but. But consistency.  
> So here you go! Technically, it’s still Saturday in my corner of the world.  
> Part of me is like “should things have been harder” but most of me is like “you already made Flynn break down in tears you can chill a little”  
> Anyway my vague understanding is the ghost club operates inside a hotel ballroom since the guys talk about seeing the hotel but also. I am vague enough I did not actually use the word hotel. I don’t know, I handwave everything constantly. It’s fine, we’re all just here for hugs and pain after all.


	5. For a Dad

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke returns to the studio with news. Parental issues are carefully not discussed. Music is played for the first time in a while.

Julie had been pacing the studio for an hour. Alex and Reggie sat on the couch, watching her.

"Is this what it's like when I do it?" Alex asked.

"Dude, I'm surprised you're not up there with her," Reggie said. Alex couldn't think of an argument to that.

"We'd bump into each other," he said by way of explanation.

Instead, he was drumming nervously on his thighs. Reggie didn't have much room to talk about nervous habits either, as he twisted his fingers together in his lap. Really, they were all bundles of nerves.

"Julie? Honey?" Ray pushed open the studio door.

"Ahh!" Julie shouted, whipping around to stare at him.

"Are you all right?" he asked. "I didn't mean to scare you. I thought you said Flynn was coming back over tonight, but it's getting late." Julie just gaped at him.

"Should we help?" Reggie asked quietly.

"How?" Alex said as Ray closed the space between himself and his daughter.

"Julie, did something happen?" he asked. "Is Flynn ok?"

"No! I mean yes! Everything is fine," Julie said. "I'm sure Flynn is just late."

As if summoned, Luke appeared in the studio. Julie jumped, opening her mouth like she was about to hit him with one of her floods of questions, but she shut her mouth when she realised her dad was trying to see what she was looking at.

"Dude, where's Flynn?" Reggie blurted.

" _Mija_ , please talk to me," Ray pleaded.

"Just - just hang on one second," Julie said with a grin Alex could only describe as queasy.

Luke took his cue.

"Flynn's ok, her parents called her. They said it was getting too late for her to be out."

"Typical," Alex muttered. Julie sighed in relief.

"I made sure she got home," Luke added, reaching out like he wanted to touch her. He glanced at Ray, who was still watching Julie closely, and pulled his hand back. "We're ok."

He didn't say anything about Willie. Alex tried not to read into that.

" _Mija,_ " Ray said softly. "You and Flynn have been spending all your time here, but I've barely heard any music. And now something is scaring you? Please."

" _Papi,_ " Julie said with a little break in her voice. "It's ok, Flynn's fine, I -" She paused. Alex guessed she was remembering that her dad didn't know how she knew that.

Julie glanced over at Alex and Reggie.

"He took the truth pretty well before," Reggie offered.

"Reggie's right," Luke said. "Ray deserves to know."

Julie waited, her eyes on Alex. He shrugged. He knew Ray was a cool guy, and a good dad. But he was still a dad, and that was hard to trust.

"One of our friends is in trouble," Julie said slowly. "Not Flynn. He's... he's friends with the guys in the band."

"What kind of trouble?" Ray paused, eyeing Julie warily. "Tell me you girls aren't plotting to fly to Sweden."

"No!" Julie exclaimed. "No, they... the guys aren't actually Swedish."

Alex tensed, but Ray only nodded, as if he wasn't surprised.

"Then what?"

"They're ghosts," Julie said.

"Right," Ray said. He sounded suspiciously similar to the way he had when Carlos had brought up his French dip ghost theory.

"No, look," Julie said, pulling out her phone. She typed something and offered the phone to her dad. He studied the screen silently.

"This is from the '90's," he said finally. "But that picture..."

"Yeah," Julie said. "I played their demo, and they showed up. When we play together, everyone can see them."

"And the friend in trouble?" Ray asked.

"He's a ghost, too," Julie said. "He helped us, but now..."

Alex couldn't be there anymore.

Luke and Reggie joined him outside a moment later.

"You guys didn't have to follow me," he said.

"Julie's got this," Reggie said. "She's had practice."

Alex laughed.

"I'm sorry I made you go back there," he said to Luke

"Dude, it's ok," Luke said. "You and Flynn were right, we needed to know."

"Yeah, but... I shouldn't have pushed like that." Alex was itching to ask what Luke had seen, but he couldn't decide if he wanted to know.

"He was there," Luke said as if he knew what Alex had been thinking. He probably did.

"And?" Alex asked. Luke tensed, avoiding Alex's eyes.

"Luke, what did Caleb do?" Alex pressed.

"Same thing he tried to do to us," Luke said. "But I guess, since Caleb has his soul and not just a stamp..."

"He's controlling Willie?" Reggie asked. Alex's mouth went dry.

"Yeah," Luke said. "Yeah, he..."

Ale started to pace. Luke followed him, holding his hand out. He wasn't blocking Alex's path; just giving him the option. Alex stilled.

"He saw us," Luke said. "Willie. He shook it off for a second."

Alex nodded slowly.

"Thanks," he said.

Carefully, Luke pulled Alex into a hug. Reggie joined in a moment later.

When Julie finished explaining to her dad, he was quiet.

"Are you mad?" Julie asked.

"I'm worried," he said. "And I want to help. I understand, you've gotten used to facing these things on your own, but I'm your dad. I can't let you, or Flynn, or your band face something like this alone."

Somebody sniffed. Julie smiled when she saw that Luke, Alex, and Reggie had returned. Reggie was teary-eyed, and even Luke and Alex seemed touched.

"That was beautiful," Reggie said

"Alex," Julie said. "Are you ok?"

He nodded, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"How'd your dad take it?" he asked her. "I mean. The rest of it."

”You’re talking to them?” her dad asked.

”Yeah,” Julie said. She smiled reassuringly at Alex. “Do you want to meet them?”

”Honey, I’ve wanted to meet them since they helped you start playing again,” her dad said.

”Is that ok?” Julie asked her band, worried they might not be up for it after the evening’s events. Luke and Reggie had already picked up their instruments, though, and Alex smiled at her ruefully.

”I could use a little drum therapy right now,” he admitted.

They ended up looping through a song Julie and Luke had been working on lately. The lyrics were still under construction, but right now singing wasn’t the point.

Julie recorded a loop on the keyboard and walked her dad around, a bizarre echo of what she’d done for Flynn what felt like forever ago.

“This is Luke,” she said. Luke nodded at her dad with a nervous smile. Julie tried to hold back her grin.

”You’re the songwriting partner?” Julie’s dad asked.

”Yes,” Luke said. He glanced at Julie for guidance, but she shrugged. She didn’t know where her dad was going with this. She didn’t _think_ she’d been too obvious about her crush the few times she’d mentioned Luke to her dad.

”You helped Julie finish ‘Stand Tall,’ her dad said. Julie’s throat tightened. “I, uh... I wasn’t sure I’d ever get to hear that one completed.”

Luke cleared his throat and sniffed.

”Julie just needed somebody to share ideas with,” he said. “I’m glad it was me.” Julie smiled gratefully at him, and he smiled back.

Alex coughed. Julie pulled away quickly, all too aware that she’d just had a moment with Luke right in front of her dad.

”This is Alex!” she said.

”Nice to meet you,” her dad said.

”Thanks for... offering to help Willie,” Alex said. “You’re pretty cool. For a dad.”

Julie’s dad laughed.

”That's high praise,” he said, and he sounded like he meant it. Alex smiled faintly.

”Yeah,” he said.

”And this,” Julie said with glee. “Is Reggie.”

”Hi!” Reggie said. “This is going a lot better than -“

Julie shook her head frantically. She’d glossed over the whole time travel thing.

”Than when we usually hang out,” Reggie finished carefully.

”We hang out?” Julie’s dad asked.

”He adores you,” Luke called.

”I think it’s sweet,” Julie said loyally. Reggie smiled brightly at her. “Sometimes he tries to help you with meals.”

”That would explain a lot, actually,” Julie’s dad said. “It’s been useful, sometimes. Now I know what’s happening it probably would be more useful.”

Julie hadn’t known Reggie’s face could light up more than it already had. She was _so_ glad they’d done this.

”I can keep helping?”

”Apparently you three are already part of the family whether I like it or not,” Julie’s dad said. “At least somebody around here wants to help with those things. Carlos only wants to cook if there’s ghost banishing involved.”

”I mean, he’d probably help if you told him he was cooking _with_ a ghost, too,” Julie said. “I should mention he also found out about the guys.”

Julie’s dad raised his eyebrows.

”And Flynn knows,” he said. “Anyone else?”

Julie shook her head.

”I hope not, because I can’t think who,” she said, though her last word trailed off into a yawn. Her dad gave her a knowing look.

”Honey, when was the last time you got a good rest?”

Julie glanced at the guys, who were all suddenly busy with their instruments.

”That’s what I thought. I don’t know if ghosts sleep, but you _all_ look tired,” her dad said. “You said Flynn is safe?”

”She’s at home,” Julie said.

”Then you can sleep now, and talk to her in the morning. I know it’s hard to wait, but you can’t save your friend in a single evening.”

”Boyfriend,” Alex cut in hastily. Julie smiled at him proudly. “Willie’s my boyfriend.”

Her dad’s face softened.

”I’m sorry,” he said. “We’ll help him.”

Alex’s drumming faltered. Julie thought she saw him blink back a tear or two.

”Thank you,” he said.

They wrapped up the song, and Julie and her dad looked at each other for a moment after the guys vanished from her dad’s view. She didn’t think he’d lied about how he felt, but she also wasn’t sure he was simply ok with everything she’d told him.

”Come to me,” Julie’s dad said. He looked around. “All of you. You’re not alone.”

He held out a finger, and Julie wrapped one of hers tightly around it.

“Can you give me a minute with the guys to say good night?” Julie asked. Her dad rubbed her shoulder gently.

”Don’t take too long, _mija,_ ” he said. “You look exhausted.”

”Thanks, dad,” Julie said wryly as he left. She turned to the guys.

“Willie?” she asked nervously.

”Oh, you were with Ray when Luke told us!” Reggie said before Luke could answer. “Luke and Flynn saw Willie.”

”Yeah, well,” Luke said. “Caleb does this thing, I guess with ghosts who don’t cooperate...”

”Reggie said he can control other ghosts,” Julie said. “That’s what he’s doing to Willie?”

”Reggie said - when did you say that? Why wasn’t I there?” Luke sounded hurt.

”Dude, you were forty,” Reggie said. Julie snorted.

”This means we know we can get Willie out, right? Because we broke Caleb’s hold before.” Julie looked between her friends, hoping for confirmation. Reggie looked hopeful. Luke shrugged. Alex just looked nervous.

”Power of love, right?” Julie said. “That’s something we have over him.”

”Yeah,” Alex said with his first genuine smile in days. It was small, but Julie would take it.

”And you and Flynn, you’re really ok? Caleb didn’t see you?” she asked Luke.

“As far as we know,” he said. ”Sorry Flynn didn’t come back here. She wanted to, but I wasn’t sure how her parents would be if she did. Since she’s always over here...”

Julie hadn’t even considered that. Given what she knew of the boys’ home lives, maybe she should have.

”No, Luke, Flynn’s parents are great,” she reassured him. “They like her to spend time with them, that’s all. They wouldn’t get any more mad than my dad would if I was gone too much or too late during a week. She’s just used to coming over here. This is where the studio is, after all, and before you three...” Julie hadn’t actually wanted to get into this, but her mouth ran away without her. “Before, I didn’t leave my house a lot. So Flynn had to come over.”

”So she won’t be in serious trouble?” Reggie asked. Julie shook her head. All three boys relaxed.

”I’m really glad you’re looking out for her,” Julie said.

”She said she’s gonna try and come tomorrow,” Luke said. “I think...” He made a face, clearly debating something.

”What is it?” Julie asked.

”I think what we saw freaked her out,” Luke said. “I don’t want to tell you too much. But she’s your friend, and you know her, so...”

”Thank you,” Julie said. “Really, Luke. I’ll make sure she’s ok.”

He nodded, looking relieved. Julie meant to say something else, but it got lost in another yawn.

”Ray was right, Julie, you should probably get some sleep,” Reggie said.

”I’ll see you in the morning?” Julie asked. It was a silly question, she knew. They were almost always here, and anything that would tear them away now would be out of their control. But the serious looks on her band’s faces as they promised made her feel better anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First off, Flynn was supposed to be here and get hugs and then the Ray discussion took way longer than I thought it would. So the chapter is split in two which does not bump up my chapter count at all because I counted wrong when I started this fic. Anyway. extra bonus Flynn development in the next one to make up for my lack of Flynn content this time, and a quick peek at how Willie's doing from his own point of view! (Yep. Pain. You're welcome.)


	6. Not Leaving You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flynn doesn't know what's going on with her, exactly, but she does know she doesn't want it to be Julie's problem. Willie has been having a Very Bad Week and it's going to get worse. Julie and Reggie have a conversation that goes wildly off the rails.

Flynn came over around lunch, having told her parents she and Julie would study for a test. Julie's dad didn't buy that excuse, of course, but he let the lie slide given the circumstances.

"You come talk to me before you do anything, all right?" Julie's dad told her, holding her close. Julie smiled up at him.

"I will, dad," she said, hoping events wouldn't make a liar out of her.

"You told him?" Flynn asked as they headed for the studio. She made a face. "Again? Why do I keep missing this?"

"You're lucky you missed most of last time," Julie reminded her. "Considering how much trouble I was in."

"Jules, have I ever told you that your life is really weird?"

"Probably not as often as I deserve," Julie laughed. She tugged at Flynn's arm, stopping her before they went into the studio.

"Are you ok?" Julie asked. "Luke said you were pretty shaken up last night."

"I'm fine," Flynn said. Julie waited, looking passively at her friend. Flynn sighed.

"Jules... Your world is constantly getting bigger, and more magical, and more dangerous. I can't help you with this stuff anymore, and it scares me. What am I supposed to do against a ghost with mind control powers?"

"Flynn, you're the reason we found Ava and got home," Julie said. "And you didn't even remember about Caleb in that timeline. You've helped me through everything."

"I am pretty great," Flynn said, but it was half-hearted. Julie frowned. Flynn almost never downplayed her accomplishments.

"There's something else," she said. Flynn looked away.

"Flynn, you have been here for me through every problem, every moment of grief and sorrow and fear. Let me help you, whatever's wrong."

Flynn shrugged.

"You know, I keep thinking about Carrie?" she said.

Julie blinked. _That_ was unexpected.

"Carrie," she repeated.

"Like, how it was when we were kids," Flynn said. "I don't know if I'm imagining it, since I only ever talk to Reggie and that's pretty new, but the Phantoms kind of... They, like, remind me of us?"

"Oh," Julie said.

"Except it's us if we actually pulled it together and made good on those dreams we had," Flynn said. "I don't know, it's silly. I mean, Carrie literally always wanted to be a solo act."

"Carrie wanted it because her dad did," Julie said.

"Yeah. You know, that makes way more sense now," Flynn said. Julie snorted. Flynn was _not_ wrong.

"So you miss Carrie?" Julie asked tentatively.

"Ew. No. I have self-respect," Flynn said. "I just... It's hard to feel like you need me. With the Phantoms now, you have that group thing back."

"Flynn, I will always need you," Julie said. "Not to fix my problems or fight ghosts or be in a band. I need you because I love you."

"See, in my head, I know that," Flynn said. "And it's like, I love that you have the guys now. People who see you for the amazing person you are, who are helping the _world_ see how awesome you are! Maybe... Maybe I'm afraid nobody will see how awesome I am if you're gone. Maybe I have friend abandonment issues. I don't know what it is, Jules, I just... I have to help you. Otherwise what am I doing?"

"Just the fact that you're here," Julie said. "You're helping. It's ok, Flynn. I'm not leaving you."

She pulled Flynn into a hug, which went on for minutes before they were interrupted.

"Hey, sorry, Luke and Alex were wondering if you were gonna stay out here forever or if we're supposed to come out, so they sent me..." Reggie at least looked embarrassed to have interrupted them.

"Can't keep the boys waiting, I'm sure they have lives to get to," Flynn said. Julie nudged her playfully.

"Don't be mean," she mock-scolded.

"It was kind of funny," Reggie offered as they went in.

"All right, war council, part the eighteenth or something," Flynn said. She and Julie sat on the couch, soon joined by Luke. Alex sat on the armchair, and Reggie hopped up on the coffee table like a particularly large cat.

"We all know what Flynn and Luke saw, right?" Julie asked. Everybody looked away, mumbling vague yeses. That was good enough for Julie; she hadn't wanted to talk about it either.

"You guys are sure Caleb didn't see you? Or have you followed? Or let you in, maybe it was a trap!" Reggie asked nervously.

"If it was a trap, he hasn't sprung it yet," Flynn said. "We're ok, Reggie."

"That's what we thought in 1995," Reggie muttered.

"Yeah but we know now," Luke said earnestly. He leaned forward, putting his hand on Reggie's knee. Reggie stared down at it with impressively pink cheeks, given his general deadness. Julie wondered what that was about.

"Dude, part of the thing was Caleb got to the living versions of us," Luke said. "When we died we had no idea not to trust him. Now we know, and we're on the lookout. Yeah, maybe we're not safe yet, but we have way more of an advantage this time."

Reggie nodded.

"You said you had a different bad idea," Alex said, looking at Flynn. "Uh, could one of you -"

Julie translated for him rapidly. Flynn grimaced.

"I did say it was bad," she began. "And it's basically the idea I had before. But... Who do we know who hates Caleb even more than us?"

"Probably his house band," Reggie murmured.

Flynn pointed at him. "I did not think of that but you make a good point. Who else?"

"Ava," Julie said. "And she doesn't care about us, not really, which means she wouldn't be dangerous the way Caleb is."

"Assuming she doesn't blame us for whatever happened to her time travel thing," Reggie said.

"Dude, what's with the gloom? This could work," Luke said.

"You don't remember Ava," Reggie said. Alex and Luke exchanged glances.

"It's gonna be ok," Luke said. He reached for Reggie's knee again. Julie didn't think she was imagining the way Reggie tensed. She frowned. She'd never seen him do that before.

"Yeah, Reg, if she really hates Caleb so much, I'll bet she'll be happy to help," Alex said.

"Yeah," Reggie said. "I'm sure it's fine."

"You don't have to do this," Flynn said. "Reggie, if you want to sit this out..."

"What, and leave the adventure to everybody else?" Reggie said in an attempt at his usual bright tone. "No way. Let's track down Ava!"

Luke sat back, casting a worried glance at Julie. She shrugged back at him; she didn't know what was going on with him, either.

Willie was working on the lighting for the show. His hands changed gels with the ease of long practice, but the practice wasn't his. His mind wandered. It was really the only option left to him. Fighting Caleb's control took energy Willie didn't have, not since most of him belonged to Caleb anyway.

Flynn and Luke had shown up to the club. Willie hadn't been sure in the moment, but he'd _wanted_ it to be them, enough to pull away for a second. Then they'd run away, all but confirming their identities. Willie had replayed the moment in his mind for the past twelve hours. We're they looking for him? Was Alex somewhere in the building? Julie, or Reggie? Did they have a plan?

"William," Caleb said in that living teenager's voice. Dante, who'd been given the dubious honour of being Caleb's body double during shows, was trailing behind. The illusion that made him look like Caleb was gone; Caleb wouldn't waste energy on appearances when everybody around already served him.

Willie turned to face him. Not that he wanted to, of course. Caleb was just looking to gloat.

"I trust your friends got a good look last night?" Caleb asked. If Willie had been in control, he might have stumbled back - the enforced stoicism was a tiny blessing, he supposed, inside a mountain of suck. "They weren't very careful coming in. They're quite lucky I had them on the list."

Willie should have known Caleb let them in.

He felt the control over his jaw relax.

"Why bother?" he snapped, only to realise too late that was exactly what Caleb had wanted him to say. His mouth shut tight again no matter what Willie tried.

"So they know exactly how futile it is to fight me," Caleb said. "The only way you get out of my control is if I let you."

 _And the only way that happens is if the guys join you,_ Willie finished mentally. It wasn't a hard guess. For all Caleb's conniving ways, he had a one track mind: power, control, a steady stream of sycophants. Willie hated that he'd been one of them.

"Change that one, and match it on upstage right," Caleb said, jerking his head at the shin in the upstage left wing. "I'm thinking cool colours. Winter. It really speaks to the death theme."

 _Or you could stick with the red,_ Willie thought as his feet carried him back over. _For hell, where you belong._

Caleb winked at him, as though he knew exactly what Willie was thinking.

Julie and Luke had a quick, whispered argument over who would check on Reggie. Flynn had opened up her actual textbook, mostly to appease her parents when she went home, and Alex had gone out to see if he could find anything like what the others had described when they discussed Ava's place.

Reggie was over by the plants again. It was weird. Usually, he'd go hang out with Julie's dad if he needed somewhere to be, or someone to talk to.

"Look, I just think it has something to do with the time travel stuff," Julie whispered. "And I actually remember it."

"I'm pretty sure the thing that's bothering him is... Different," Luke said.

"How?" Julie asked. Luke wrinkled his nose.

"Fine," he said. "But if he says its private, I told you so."

Julie raised her eyebrows at him. Luke shrugged sheepishly.

"This is a silly argument, isn't it?" he said. Julie laughed.

"A little," she said. "But it means we care."

Luke's eyes softened, and he looked at her like she was the only person he'd ever seen. Julie willed her heart to beat normally.

"Yeah," he said.

Julie smiled at him before walking over to Reggie.

"Hey," she said. "Are you ok?"

"Fine," Reggie said. He dragged his fingers through a leaf. "I'm doing great. Well, as great as I can be. Things are bad, but I'm ok personally."

"Reggie, you've been really quiet," Julie said. "And that stuff you were saying earlier... The time travel thing really hurt you, didn't it?"

"I mean, it did kill me," Reggie said.

"Not funny, Reg," Julie said sternly. "Come on." She sat down on the piano bench, her back to the studio, and patted the space next to her. Reggie sat down stiffly, but he relaxed when she pulled him close and leaned on his shoulder.

"It's not the time travel," Reggie said. "Maybe only a little. I just... Things are weird right now."

"I promise I don't want to pry, but you got really tense when Luke touched you earlier," Julie said. "I've never seen you like that. You love hugs usually."

"Yeah," Reggie said. "I don't know, he surprised me?"

"That doesn't sound like a fact," Julie said. "Please, Reggie. Right now the only thing I can think of is you're scared of Luke, and that's... I mean I guess, it's that or you have a crush - oh my god, Reggie!" Julie hissed, careful to keep her voice low. She _knew_ Luke was still trying to hear what they said.

"You have a crush on Luke!" Julie exclaimed quietly.

"What? No! Julie, please keep your voice down!" Reggie cast an anxious glance back at Luke, who looked like a puppy who'd been left at doggy daycare for the first time.

"That's... Not really it," Reggie said.

"Isn't it?" Julie asked. The thing was, much as it hurt to think of Luke without her, they'd be good together. They knew each other so well. Julie could listen to them banter all day.

"Why are you both like this?" Reggie moaned. "You think it's Luke. Luke thinks it's you."

The words seemed to register with both of them at the same time. He froze, and Julie gaped at him.

"So which is it?" she asked, in a bizarre sort of whisper-shriek that she should probably never do again for the sake of her singing career.

"Neither!"

That was a disappointing answer, and Julie set that emotion aside to freak out about later.

"Reggie, please, if it's neither of us, you can tell us both, right? I won't judge you, I swear."

Reggie shook his head. A thought occurred to Julie.

"Reggie," she said slowly. "You like us both."

"Please don't tell Luke," Reggie burst out. "I just want to be your friend, I can't lose you -"

"Oh, Reggie," Julie said, wrapping her arms around him. "If that's what you want, I'll keep it quiet. I really am sorry I pushed you."

"You were worried," Reggie said.

"Not by the time you told me," Julie said, disgusted with herself. "I just got excited. It wasn't fair to make you come out like that before you were ready."

"I've been ready," Reggie murmured. "But I always fall for my best friends when they're already in relationships. I can't mess with their happiness, you know? You're all too important to mess that up because I want a kiss or something." He nestled his chin in her shoulder, and leaned his head against hers. Julie closed her eyes.

"Do you want to help me tell my dad what we've been talking about?" she asked. "And then you can talk to him about his work?"

"I'd like that," Reggie said. His voice sounded thick, like when he cried, but when he sat up and smiled at her it looked real.

"Is Luke really worried about me?" he asked.

"Of course!" Julie said. "Reggie, he loves you. I don't know how, and I'm done making those kinds of assumptions for a while. But he really wants to know you're ok."

Reggie looked over at Luke and waved. Luke poofed over.

"You're ok?" he asked immediately.

"I'm feeling better," Reggie said. "Some of the time travel stuff freaked me out."

Julie tried to look as though this wasn't a blatant lie. At least she'd won her and Luke's little argument.

"We were gonna go talk to my dad," Julie said, offering one hand to each other guys. "Flynn, are you coming or staying?" she called as each of her ghosts took a hand.

"Like I'm going to explain to your dad how I said we should track down a maniacal ghost with time travel powers," Flynn said. "Have fun, Jules, I am staying out of it."

She eyed Julie and Reggie (and Julie's other hand, since that was all she could see of Luke) as they walked past.

"You and your dead boys," Flynn said. "Jules, next chance we get we're having a talk."

"Ok, bye Flynn!" Julie said quickly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Literally all I knew about this chapter before I started working on it was that Julie would ask Flynn what was going on (not even her full response, really, like the Carrie stuff? Out of nowhere), Flynn suggesting they go to Ava, and the content of Willie's scene. This was...so wild to write. I said a conversation went off the rails in my summary but I really do mean this entire chapter  
> Up next! The quest for Ava is aided by an unlikely friend. Or foe. Depends on the context, really.


	7. Lie Voice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ray is one dramatic reveal away from a breakdown, but you'd never know it from the kids' point of view. A new friend (frenemy?) arrives. The boys finally stage an intervention for Julie's lying ability.

"So you want to go looking for a new ghost?" Ray repeated, leaning against the countertop. Julie smiled at him in that painfully broad way that meant she was lying. Reggie wondered if she even knew she did that.

"I mean, we know her," she said. "And she hates Caleb, so she'll be happy to help."

"And you didn't mention her before because..."

"We only just met," Julie said, and even the truth was sounding like a lie now. Reggie and Luke exchanged worried glances. They had to help her before she got even worse.

 _She wouldn't hurt us,_ Reggie wrote on a sticky note.

"Dude, are you actually lying to Ray?" Luke said.

"No!" Reggie said defensively as Ray looked his note over. Julie barely seemed to notice their exchange, fixated on her dad the way she was. "I don't think Ava cares enough to hurt us."

"That's so much better," Luke muttered.

"I didn't say it was good," Reggie said.

" _Mija,_ just tell me a little more about this ghost you're going after," her dad said.

"Oh! Uh... Well, she's a ghost..." Julie began.

Ray nodded seriously. "I remember you telling me that." Nice man that he was, he didn't remind them they'd said that less than five minutes ago.

"She's as powerful as Caleb, we think," Julie said. "She was visible to Flynn and me, and she teleported us."

"And why did she do that?"

"To... Show us her cool ghost powers," Julie said.

"Julie, you have got to be kidding me," Luke said. Reggie only cringed.

"Julie," Ray said sternly. "Why are you lying to me?"

"Lying? Who's lying?" Julie hesitated.

"I really don't think you can fix this one," Reggie said. She deflated.

"She's really just a powerful ghost who doesn't like Caleb," Julie said. "I swear. She - she scares us, a little, and that's what I was trying to hide from you, but Reggie was telling the truth! We don't think she'd hurt us, not unless we did something awful to her, and we haven't."

"We made a deal, Julie, and you should have told me that from the start," her dad said. "None of this glossing over the truth."

"We still haven't told you everything," Reggie remarked. Luke glared at him. "What? As everyone is always reminding me, he can't hear us!"

"Guys," Julie said. "Seriously?"

Ray smiled and shook his head.

"That's going to take some getting used to," he said. "Do you know where to find this ghost?"

"Sort of," Julie said. "We saw the inside of her place."

"Right," her dad said. "And you don't know how to get there."

Julie and Reggie both shook their heads. Luke wrote something down below Reggie's note on the sticky note, but Reggie couldn't make out the words. Ray eyed the new note and leaned over to Julie.

"I take it this is Luke," he said.

"Yep," Julie said.

"And what does it say?"

"Oh, come on!" Luke exclaimed, throwing his hands up. Reggie laughed as Julie took a peek at the note, a smile tugging at her face.

"I think I'll ask," she said after a moment. "Hey, Luke?"

"I was saying we would all go together if he was worried," Luke said. He pouted. "You really can't read it?"

"Not this time," Julie said.

"Yeah, well. It's a weird pen."

"I was fine with it," Reggie added helpfully.

"Dude." Luke shook his head at Reggie, who put on his most innocent smile. Julie relayed Luke's words back to Ray.

"I'm coming with you to see this ghost," Ray said. "I'm glad you're all looking out for each other, but you're still just kids, _mija._ "

Julie looked frantically at Luke and Reggie. Reggie gulped. Julie hadn't told her dad about the time travel, which meant he'd figure out really fast that they'd kept something from him if he talked to Ava.

"Tell him... Tell him if something does go wrong, if he stays out of Ava's way he can help us," Luke said quickly.

"That's not going to convince him we'll be safe," Julie hissed.

"Yeah, well, odds are we won't be," Luke said.

"He deserves to know, Julie," Reggie added. "If something happens and Ray didn't even know things could go wrong..."

"That's why I'm trying not to worry him," Julie said softly.

" _Mija,"_ Ray prompted.

Julie sighed and told him what Luke had suggested.

"We swear, we don't think anything will happen," Julie said. Her voice was quiet, which told Reggie she meant it when she spoke next: "But we'd all feel a lot better if we knew you were out there and Ava didn't know."

Ray didn't look happy about this, but Reggie didn't think any of them expected that. After a long pause, Ray nodded.

"Ok," he said. "If it's this or you going off alone I know which one I prefer. When you find this ghost, I take you there and I wait for you, and you come back to me or you find a way to tell me you need help."

Julie nodded, and then launched herself at her dad, hugging him so hard he stumbled back.

"Promise me, as soon as we get your friend out, you won't chase any more dangerous ghosts," Ray said.

"That's the goal," Julie murmured into his shirt.

"Good," Ray said. "I want to keep you kids safe." He looked up, his eyes sweeping over where Luke and Reggie stood. "All of you."

Reggie sniffled and threw himself into the hug, mostly hugging Julie so he could pretend it was a true group hug. Julie let out a muffled noise of surprise, and then laughed.

"Reggie appreciates you," she told her dad as an explanation.

"Apparently we've been hanging out for months, so I hope so," Ray said.

"Guys," Luke said, hitting Reggie on the shoulder.

"Dude, we were having a moment!" Reggie said as he turned. Then his eyes widened, and he tapped Julie's shoulder frantically.

"Julie, there's another ghost here," Reggie said. "From Caleb's club."

Julie whirled around. She looked around, then at Reggie and Luke, shaking her head. She couldn't see him.

"Julie? What's going on?"

"I won't hurt you," the ghost said. "I swear. I'm a friend of Willie's."

"Dad, we might have news," Julie said slowly. "Can we go to the studio?"

"Julie, I need to know what's going on," Ray said.

"You wouldn't be able to hear anyway," Julie said. "I promise, we will tell you everything."

"Julie, are you sure?" Reggie asked. Julie sent him a warning look.

"Ok," Ray said. "I don't like this, Julie."

Julie looked down.

"Me neither," she said. She looked back at Luke and Reggie and jerked her head to the door. "Let's go. Can one of you get Alex?"

"I'll go," Reggie said. "Wait, you were one of the guys who danced with him!" He _knew_ he recognised the ghost for a good reason.

"Reggie," Julie said with a tiny smile.

"Right!" he said, and went after Alex.

Luke was incredibly grateful when Reggie and Alex came back. Julie had started to pace, and Flynn was doing her best to intimidate the new ghost in spite of the fact that she couldn't see or hear him.

"You," Alex said when he caught sight of the ghost. "Dante, right?"

The ghost nodded.

"What are you doing here?" Alex continued coldly.

"Look, Willie is my friend," Dante said. "It was one thing before. We only saw Caleb use his powers on terrible ghosts, people none of us really wanted wandering around. But Willie? He _introduced_ half of us to Caleb. If Caleb can do this to somebody he relied on that much, none of us are safe."

"But you were ok with it when it was us," Alex said.

"No," Dante said quickly. He sighed.

"It never took much to convince us Caleb had a good idea," Dante said. "What else was there to the afterlife? Until you, none of us saw how far Caleb would go. Even then, a lot of us were hoping he'd just... Let Willie go. That he wouldn't see a need to keep him, since Caleb lost his loyalty."

"What is he saying?" Julie asked. Luke repeated a quick version of Dante's speech, trying to hold in his anger long enough to make sure Julie heard all of it.

"Hey, uh, if Luke or Alex is talking, maybe remember that I can't hear you?" Flynn said, interrupting him. Luke growled as Reggie took over.

"Hey," Julie said, taking Luke's hand. "It's ok."

"I just... I don't trust this guy," Luke said softly. "And Alex is already hurting."

"Don't you think Caleb's people have more right than anyone to fight him?" Julie said softly. "Like Reggie said. His house band probably hates him now, even if they didn't before."

Weird as Reggie was, he was usually a good judge of these things. Luke took a deep breath, convinced himself it did something for him, and looked at Dante.

"You want to help us?" he asked. "What do you know about Ava?"

Dante looked horrified.

"What do you want with her?" he said. "Look, however bad Caleb is, at least you know why he does things."

"We've got a pretty good handle on how Ava thinks," Julie said once Reggie had repeated Dante's words for her and Flynn.

"All you have to do is tell us where to find her," Flynn added.

Dante looked between them.

"You really think you can get Willie out?" he asked.

"Julie got us out," Luke said. "She can do it again. We just need to know more about Caleb."

Dante nodded slowly.

"Ava would know," he admitted. "Nobody knows how long they've hated each other, but..."

"If you're really Willie's friend, you'll stop stalling and help us," Alex said.

Dante locked eyes with him.

"Fine," he said. "The lifers, they're in school, right? I'll take you there tomorrow afternoon. Meet me at the beach."

Luke and his friends drew close to discuss this.

"I don't know if I trust him," Alex said. "But I couldn't find anything on Ava alone."

"I believe him," Reggie said. "Sometimes you like people because they're all you have."

Luke closed his eyes.

"We trust Willie," he said. "Because we gave him a second chance."

"So we agree?" Julie said. "We give Dante a chance, and hopefully he helps us find Ava."

"And if he reports back to Caleb?" Flynn asked.

"Hopefully by then we'll have Ava on our side," Julie said.

Nobody had any arguments to that. Julie stepped away from their little circle and turned to Dante. Luke gently steered her slightly to the left, so she was actually looking at him and not his shoulder.

"Tomorrow, then," Julie said. "If you tell Caleb, we'll - we'll fight you, too."

Dante smiled, and Luke bristled. Yes, Julie was adorable, but her threat was real!

"Dude," Reggie whispered to him. Luke rolled his eyes.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Dante said. He prepared to poof out, then stopped.

"Look," he said. "You should know. As a sign of good faith. Caleb wanted you to see Willie the other night."

"What?" Luke demanded. "Why? What is he after?"

"He wanted you to know - to think," Dante corrected himself. "That there was no saving Willie, not unless Caleb allowed it." A bitter smile played around his mouth. "I guess that backfired on the old devil."

"Yeah," Alex said. "It did."

Dante's smile grew, and then he left.

"And now we're waiting until tomorrow," Flynn said. "Great. I've run out of excuses to avoid actually studying, haven't I?"

"Wait, what have you been doing?" Julie asked.

"Looking up Caleb's career when he was a lifer," Flynn said. "I was kind of hoping for blackmail, but also everybody who would care is dead so I didn't really think that one through."

"Also, if it's on the internet, wouldn't they already know?" Alex asked rhetorically.

"I can _feel_ the guys making snarky remarks," Flynn said. "Also, Reggie is making that face where he thinks something is funny but feels bad admitting it. Julie, I've known your ghost friends too long, I know their specific facial expressions."

"Weren't you just talking about how you want more friends?" Julie teased.

"I _deserve_ more friends, but if you're all going to tease me like this I don't know if I want them," Flynn said. She grinned and pulled Julie into a hug.

"I should go home," she said regretfully. "Appease my parents."

"Tell your mom and dad I said hi," Julie said.

"So," Alex said when Flynn had left. "Now what?"

"Somebody should probably tell Ray what happened," Reggie said. He grinned brightly. Luke's heart eased at the sight; it had been a minute since he smiled like that, but whatever he and Julie had said to each other had worked. "Or maybe we could teach Julie how to lie!"

"What? I can lie," Julie said. Luke and the others snickered as Julie's eyes widened. She'd clearly realised that was nothing to be offended about.

"You have a lie voice," Reggie said.

"I do not have a lie voice," Julie protested.

"Yeah, you kind of do," Luke said, wrapping an arm around Reggie and grinning at her. "And that was it."

Julie opened her mouth, but she didn't say anything. Probably trying to figure out what her lie voice sounded like.

"You also wave your hands," Reggie continued.

"I don't! That's -" Julie paused, staring at her hand. She had waved it in front of her face, and now stood frozen with her hand in front of her nose. "Um."

"Hey, it's a good thing. You never had to lie," Luke said. Julie raised her eyebrows at him.

"He means to your parents," Alex said.

"Yeah, growing up," Reggie said. "That's how you get used to it."

"No offense, Reggie, but I wouldn't have picked you to teach a masterclass in lying," Julie said teasingly.

He shrugged.

"It didn't really matter whether I lied or told the truth, nobody believed me anyway," Reggie said. Luke frowned, hugging Reggie closer for a minute.

"They're right, though," Luke said to Julie. "Your mom and Ray never gave you a reason to lie."

Julie smiled at them sadly.

"You guys know how sad that makes me, right?" she said softly. "And... That there's nobody here you ever need to lie to. Nobody to be afraid of."

"Yeah," Alex said. "We know."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The lie voice conversation has been around since I started writing Phantom Singular. It was originally in the first one, so it was just Reggie and Julie, but I like it here too. I have A Lot of thoughts about the individual way each of the band approaches lying to/sneaking around their parents, and this is just the tip of the iceberg.  
> Also surprise! I'm curious if anybody suspected Dante might be involved, since I kept name dropping him. Not that it was a lot of foreshadowing, but. I'm curious  
> Tomorrow, Ava's not-so-triumphant return, and we talk about something that our heroes have been wilfully ignoring since the end of the last big fic!


	8. Unfinished Business

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ava exists to provide exposition and plot points and I'm not sorry about that. Julie has a stroke of possibly-genius, and they are all reminded of a major setback to their plans.

"Are you sure about this?" Julie's dad asked for the fifth time.

"Under the circumstances we're about as sure as we can be," Julie said, trying to keep her voice reassuring. They'd established that she couldn't lie to her dad, and that she shouldn't, but her impulse to downplay the situation was still strong. "Dad, please trust me."

"You, I trust," he said as he parked. "Some ghost I've never met?"

"I know," Julie said. "Believe me." She peered out the window. Dante had given them the location of Ava's home, and he and Julie's ghost friends were supposed to meet Julie and Flynn there. To her relief, she saw Luke on the corner, bouncing and looking around anxiously.

"If something goes wrong we'll call, and if we can't do that we'll send one of the guys," Julie said, leaning forward to kiss her dad on the cheek before sliding out of the car. Flynn followed.

"Here we go," Flynn said. She linked arms with Julie. Luke saw them and poofed over.

"Reggie and Alex are over here," he said, leading them around the corner. Julie glanced back at her dad with a smile, hoping he'd be ok with her out of sight.

"And Dante?" Julie asked. Luke rolled his eyes.

"Him too," he said. "I know we decided to give him a chance, but why'd it take him this long?"

"Why did it take Willie until he met Alex?" Julie reminded him. Luke sighed.

"This sounds like such an interesting conversation, I'd love to hear it someday," Flynn said.

"Luke doesn't trust Dante," Julie explained.

"Oh, well, obviously. As long as we see Ava who cares?"

Alex and Reggie were waiting by what looked like an employee entrance to a disused bar.

"Anybody else really uncomfortable with this?" Reggie asked as Julie, Flynn, and Luke joined them.

"You mean other than all of us and my dad?" Julie muttered. "Where's Dante?"

"Right here," Alex said grimly, gesturing to a space between him and the wall.

"So... Do we knock?" Flynn asked. "I assume this is it."

Honestly, given the way things happened when they met Ava, Julie was a little surprised the ghost hadn't just opened the door and started making fun of them or something. She tested the door handle nervously. It turned easily under her hand.

"Nope," Alex said, hauling something - someone - invisible in front of Julie. "You said this was the right place, you get to prove it."

"Dante?" Julie whispered to Reggie.

"Yep. Apparently he's afraid of Ava."

"That I can relate to," Flynn muttered. The door swung open, and a second later Alex looked at Julie with a nervous smile.

"Time to meet Ava, I guess," he said.

Inside, the room was the same as Julie remembered. A long table was in the center of the dingy, dimly lit space, covered in books and papers. The cabinet with the time travel device looked the same, except the door hung open, and Ava was seated cross-legged in front of it, her device in her lap. She was talking to it, Julie realised.

"Come on, for me," Ava muttered.

"Ava," Julie said. Luke grabbed her hand.

The older ghost paused. Slowly, she turned her head to look over her shoulder at the group of teenagers and ghosts in her doorway.

"You little pests," Ava said.

"We need to talk to you," Julie said, pretending she didn't see Reggie tugging at the hem of his jacket or Flynn looking around nervously for an escape.

"And why should I indulge you? Thanks to you little miscreants my Instrument no longer functions properly! I can't continue my research, I can't go anywhere or anywhen, and worst of all, I am bored!"

"Wow," Alex muttered.

"We need to know about Caleb," Julie said. "Wouldn't you like to win a fight against him?"

"He's the one who broke your thing," Reggie put in. "We weren't even going to use it."

Ava glanced down at the little ball in her lap.

"Fine," she said as she put the ball away, and then she was standing in front of them. "Tell me, what is one of Caleb's more loyal pets doing here? Don't tell me Willie started a trend."

If Dante said something, Julie didn't know what it was. Ava's mouth slowly curved into a smile.

"You've intrigued me," she said. "Dante, isn't it? Why don't you - oh." She pouted dramatically. "He left. Scared of me for some reason."

"Can't imagine why," Flynn muttered.

"Fine, fine, what do you want to know?" Ava asked. "I know a lot about Caleb, but very little about that man is interesting."

"We need to free Willie," Alex said. "What can you tell us about the way Caleb takes souls?"

Ava rolled her eyes.

"Have you never read anything with a trickster or temptress figure? He's a straight forward con artist with a stereotypically devilish bent. Gives you what you want, or what seems like what you want, and in exchange you give him a soul."

"Yeah, but what does that mean?" Luke pressed. He took a single step forward, then retreated back to Julie's side. "I mean, Willie makes choices and stuff. He's not usually under Caleb's control."

"Usually?" Ava asked. Luke looked guiltily at the others, but Julie hadn't considered hiding what was going on with Willie. Ava might know more about Caleb's control powers.

"Caleb's using him like one of his little puppets, isn't he?" Ava asked. She chuckled. "That would explain Dante. Caleb never has been good at hanging on when things start to spiral out of his control."

"Either you have answers for us or we leave," Alex said.

"I don't mind the thought of you leaving," Ava said pointedly. "But I do like the idea of you stealing one of Caleb's out from under his nose." She walked over to her table, digging an old leather notebook out from under the pile.

"What I know about Caleb's soul theft is not much," she said. "Not my interest, so it's not my expertise. I think it's a tired trope. But souls can be transferred or let go, if the owner so chooses. Like any property."

"Property," Julie repeated quietly, feeling sick to her stomach.

Ava eyed her.

"Do you have a better word?" she asked. "I never said it was pretty, Julie. I doubt you all want to depend on Caleb's mercy, which means you need a deal he'll like. Power, control, the elimination of ghosts who threaten him... I don't suggest handing me over, though, because it wouldn't go well for anyone but me."

"We're not giving Caleb any of that," Julie said firmly.

"There's no way to just beat him?" Flynn asked.

"In what, arm-wrestling?" Ava scoffed. "I take it back, you aren't interesting, you're just idiots. Have you even leveled the score between you?"

"What?" Luke asked.

"Oh!" Reggie tapped Julie's shoulder rapidly, looking horrified. "Julie, he said we owed him!"

"For the dumb one in the group, you are quick on the uptake," Ava said. "I suppose it was the same way with the Monkees, on tv. More funny that way."

"Don't talk to him like that!" Luke snapped. Julie, Alex, and Flynn closed ranks in front of Reggie, glaring at Ava.

"What? Peter was always my favourite," Ava said. "Anyway, he's right, you owe Caleb whether you like it or not. You set out to do something, he did it for you, and there's a magical debt between you now. Doesn't matter which of you pay it, but somebody has to if you ever want to get something out of him."

"And how do we pay it?" Alex asked.

"Do I look like a magic expert? I know love and I know time, but magic is... Convoluted and dreadfully obtuse. Boring. I've heard you know, when your debt is paid, but that might just be nonsense."

"So what good are you, exactly?" Alex snapped.

"You came here, sweetheart, not the other way around," Ava snapped. "I'm so sorry your boyfriend is starting a new tap dance career without you, but you don't get to yell at me about it."

"Stop it," Julie said. "Don't talk to any of my friends like that."

"Why?" Ava asked, like a petulant toddler. "They're not my friends, Julie, darling."

"Because you want Caleb gone," Julie said.

"I'm sorry, are _you_ proposing that you'll eliminate Caleb for good?" Ava laughed. "Darling, I've known you for a few weeks, and most of that at a distance, and _I_ know you'd never do that."

"Julie, what are you thinking?" Flynn whispered, tugging at her shoulder. Julie let her shoulder slip free from Flynn's grasp and took a step forward, her hand still stretched back to hang onto Luke's.

"What if we made him move on?" Julie asked. "All ghosts have unfinished business. So what is Caleb's?"

Ava gaped at her. Reggie made a little squeaking noise. Luke let out an astonished laugh.

"Oh, I _do_ like you," she said. "Look, I don't know for sure what Caleb's deal is, but ghosts tend to be... Obsessed with things. My unfinished business is probably one of the stories I never published. I burned them all, by the way, so don't get any ideas. I'm sure Caleb wants somebody to pay attention to him."

"But you don't know who?" Luke said.

"Luke. Honey. Are you under the impression that Caleb and I get together for group therapy every once in a while? Ghost coffee meetings? Oh, I know, evil ghost book club!" Ava rolled her eyes. "Any more questions? I have things to do."

"Like crying over your toy?" Flynn asked.

Ava glared at her. Julie gripped Flynn's hand anxiously, but Ava dropped the glare soon enough and turned away.

"Good luck," Ava said. "Seriously. I'd love it if Caleb got taken down a few pegs. Maybe if it goes well I'll come watch!"

With that, she picked her time travel device back up and sat down again. Julie and her friends glanced awkwardly at each other and then slowly filed out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's my story and I can make a niche reference to a 1960s pop band if I want to. Also the Monkees were like, MY boy band growing up. Ava continues to be evil alternate universe me.  
> This chapter is so SO much exposition oh my god  
> Next time, our heroes decide to ask Dante if he knows what Caleb really wants, except somehow they have to do it under Caleb's radar.


	9. I'd Take That Hug Now

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Realisations abound. Alex is Tired.

When Alex, Luke, and Reggie returned to the studio, Dante was outside, wringing his hands.

"You were a lot of help with Ava!" Alex snapped.

"Yeah, disappearing like that doesn't exactly scream helpful," Reggie said as Luke placed a steadying hand on Alex's shoulder.

Dante looked remorseful, but Alex was still upset that Ava hadn't really had any answers for them, and he wasn't inclined to be nice to the guy.

If he was really being honest, Alex was pissed that Dante got to wander around behind Caleb's back while Willie was stuck.

But he definitely wasn't about to admit that to anybody else.

"What was I supposed to do?" Dante asked. "Look if I spent too much time with you or Ava, Caleb would know. He knew when Willie was following you."

"Look if you want to help then prove it, all right, the reason we like Willie is he didn't run out on us!" Luke said.

Dante scowled at them.

"Fine," he said. "Look, I really can't be gone too long, but if you need me come find me. Better yet, send a message. The less I interact with you or anybody Caleb recognises the better."

"What, like a letter?" Reggie asked. Dante snorted.

"Sure," he said. "Drop me a letter, and I'll tell you what I can."

He tensed, looking away from them in a way Alex knew well. Caleb was calling him.

"I have to go," Dante said. Alex had to admit he really did sound apologetic. "Here."

He rattled off an address.

"Send it there, and I'll know," he said.

"Seriously?" Luke asked as Reggie chanted the address to himself. "It's pretty cloak and dagger."

"Yeah," Dante said. "I'm sure nothing about Caleb makes that seem reasonable, right?" He poofed away.

A few minutes later, they heard the sound of Ray's car arriving. Reggie and Luke headed towards the driveway. Luke paused when he saw Alex hadn't moved.

"Are you coming?" he asked. Alex jerked his thumb at the studio.

"Think I'm gonna practice," he said. "You know, hit some things, freak out."

Luke looked back at Reggie and nodded towards the driveway. Reggie smiled at them both and went off to see Julie, Flynn, and Ray. Luke approached Alex.

"You're upset about Willie, right?"

"Yeah, I'm upset about Willie, Luke! I have been for a while!"

Luke flinched. Alex sighed.

"I'm sorry," he said, trying not to cry. "I know - I appreciate you checking up on me."

"We'll get Willie back," Luke said. "If we have to carry him out of the club or something, ok?"

Alex had to laugh at the image of Luke and Reggie carrying Willie like a mattress or something, accidentally bumping into walls as they struggled around corners.

"I just need some time," Alex said. "And since the last time I went for a walk, I met Willie, I figured practicing alone was probably going to be my best choice."

"You want us to stay out for a while?" Luke asked.

"Just... Fill Julie in," Alex said. "I'll probably be fine by the time you're done reassuring Ray."

"Right, so that'll be tomorrow," Luke said. He eyed Alex nervously and spread his arms. "Do you want a hug?"

Alex shook his head. "Not right now," he said. "Thanks." He turned and entered the studio, stopping to lean against the door once he was in. He heard Luke call something out to Julie, and Flynn's laugh.

Alex summoned his drumsticks, sat down, and started to play.

"A letter, though?" Flynn repeated. Reggie shrugged.

"Dante thinks that's the best way of staying out of Caleb's way," he said. Luke, who'd only just joined them, mouthed something that looked suspiciously like 'Dante says,' complete with a little eye roll.

"And send it where?" Julie asked. She led the way to her room, hoping for a little more privacy. "Do we need stamps? Where do you even get stamps?"

Reggie stared at her.

"The post office?" he said slowly, and Julie was reminded that he was from two and a half decades ago. Also, she probably should have guessed that. "Oh! I've got the address, hang on." He squeezed his eyes shut and chanted something to himself, too fast and quiet for Julie to catch. Flynn tossed him the notebook she'd taken to carrying as soon as he opened his eyes.

"Here," Reggie said once he'd written it down. He passed them the notebook. Julie didn't recognise the address, but she was sure there were a lot of addresses she wouldn't know. She shrugged at Flynn.

"So now what?" Flynn said. " I mean it's great Dante does want to help but what do we even ask him for?"

"He might have a guess about Caleb's unfinished business,"Julie said slowly.

"Julie, are you sure this will even work? We couldn't even figure out our own unfinished business," Luke said. Julie looked at Reggie, who only shrugged apologetically.

"I told Julie I thought maybe unfinished business was like love, but it's Caleb so never mind," Flynn said. "Dante is probably our best option."

"Wait when was that?" Luke asked. Julie patted him on the shoulder sympathetically.

"Alternate timeline," she said. "Don't worry about it."

"And what about the other thing Dante said? Finding somebody Caleb doesn't know?" Luke asked. "Maybe your dad could do it?"

Julie tensed. She really didn't want to get her dad involved, especially since they didn't know if Caleb would know him.

"Isn't the whole point of the letter that Caleb won't know?" Flynn asked.

"Yeah, but after everything Caleb's done it's probably good to be careful," Reggie said quietly. Luke wrapped an arm around his shoulders. Reggie glanced at Luke, then looked at Julie with wide eyes.

Julie could only smile at him. She knew exactly how it felt to have a crush on Luke when he did that. Reggie relaxed, giving her a crooked smile in return.

Julie had missed that smile.

Julie's dad poked his head in.

"Flynn, your parents are here," he said. "They said something about dinner as a family?"

Flynn sighed dramatically but she didn't protest. She gave Julie a quick hug and waved at Reggie (and in the vague direction of Luke) before she left.

"I'm sorry your visit didn't go the way you'd hoped," Julie's dad said.

"It gave us an idea," Julie said. "Honestly that was probably as helpful as Ava gets, so we're lucky."

"Well, at least you're finding the bright side to these things," her dad said. "I was going to start dinner."

"Spaghetti?" Julie asked knowingly. Her dad made a noncommittal noise that meant 'yes'.

"Can I help?" Reggie asked. Julie laughed and relayed the question to her dad.

"Sure?" he said, sounding unsure, but he smiled nonetheless. "Glad somebody around here cares about my cooking."

"Very funny," Julie said. "I'll be down in a minute."

"I'm gonna check on Alex," Luke said, poofing out.

"Darn," Reggie said, lingering in Julie's doorway even though her dad had left. "I wanted to say it to both of you."

"Say what?" Julie asked. Her heart started to pound. Was this about Reggie's crushes? Was he planning to talk to them both? What would she say?

"Thanks," Reggie said. Julie stared at him, confused.

"With Ava, when she was being mean," Reggie said. "I know not to listen to people like her but... it's nice that you and Luke didn't let her get away with it."

"Yeah," Julie managed. "Of course. Reggie, we..."

Given what she knew, _care about you_ felt like a weird way to end the sentence.

"Nobody gets to be mean to my friends," Julie said finally.

Reggie did a pleased little full-body wriggle.

"I'm gonna go help Ray!" he said. Then Julie was left alone in her room to panic over the realisation that she'd actually been _disappointed_ when Reggie didn't bring up his crush.

_911,_ she texted Flynn.

_what?_

_I think maybe I like Reggie now_

_Oh my goddddddd,_ was Flynn's response, followed by a phone call two seconds later.

"So is this an instead of Luke thing, or an in addition to Luke thing? Because if it's the second, Jules, I knew. You're obvious. And you now _officially_ have a type!"

"I do not have a type!"

"Mmmm, cute, musician, dead for twenty five years, it's a type at this point," Flynn said. "Why are you like this?"

"He's sweet!" Julie said.

"And dead," Flynn said. "You had to know this would be my response. Two ghost crushes is actually worse than one."

"What, are you going to tell me to avoid eye contact with him, too? That's half the band, Flynn!"

"Not my fault your taste runs toward the tragic," Flynn said. "And I mean that in, like, a literary sense. I will continue to concede that your boys are hot."

"I know Reggie likes me," Julie admitted. "And Luke."

"So does everybody, except maybe Luke," Flynn said. "And even that's a maybe, he just seems kind of oblivious."

"What do I do?" Julie moaned.

"Nothing, because they're dead." Flynn was silent, but Julie didn't even have the energy to protest anymore. "Ugh, fine, if they were alive, which they're not, here's what I would say: talk to them. Maybe you could all date. I know you know that's a thing."

"Thanks, Flynn," Julie said. She was pretty sure it would be a little more complicated than that, but Flynn's tacit approval meant something nonetheless.

"That's _if they were alive,_ which they are _not!"_ Flynn said pointedly.

"Sure, Flynn," Julie said.

Luke wasn't proud of it, but he doubled back to ask Julie for advice. He knew Alex better than anybody, but that didn't mean he knew how to help Alex deal with ghost boyfriend drama.

When he approached her door, though, she sounded like she was talking to someone. Luke tensed. Reggie was downstairs with Ray. Flynn was gone. Who was she talking to? Was something wrong?

"I do not have a type!" Julie exclaimed. Luke frowned, trying to figure out what that meant, then poofed back out of the house when he realised Julie was definitely talking to Flynn and it was definitely about crushes.

"Alex, do I have a type?" was the first thing Luke said. It wasn't what he'd meant to say, and Alex seemed confused, but it was out there. He leaned on Alex's hi-hat. Alex sighed and stopped playing.

"Why are you asking me this?" Alex said with the long-suffering patience of a friend who knew Luke couldn't do anything until he'd figured something out. Luke was very lucky to have him.

"Flynn said something to Julie about her type."

"Tell me you weren't eavesdropping," Alex groaned.

"No! Just curious," Luke turned to look out at the room, then spun back around to face Alex. "So what's my type? I don't think I have one."

"You don't?" Alex asked. "I'm pretty sure you do."

"What? No," Luke said. "I mean there's Julie, there was you... Dude, the only thing you have in common is the band."

Alex waited with that look on his face he usually reserved for watching Reggie come to a conclusion. Luke wondered if this was the first time he'd gotten that look or just the first time he'd noticed.

"I don't get it," Luke admitted.

"Luke. Musicians," Alex said. "Your first crush as a kid was on a member of the Supremes. You never even saw a picture of her, but you always picked her voice out of the harmonies."

"She's a good singer," Luke said.

"Yeah, and when we we're five you said that was the reason you were gonna marry her," Alex said. "And that one guy, the time we were almost kicked out of that band competition."

"I wanted to learn some new guitar techniques!" Luke exclaimed.

"You were the only one who believed you meant 'music' when you said 'techniques,'" Alex said. "And I'm sure that your coming out to us a week later was a coincidence?"

Luke had to concede that point.

"It's not like I've crushed on every musician I admire," Luke said. He took a few steps back, pointing for emphasis. "Reggie and I are friends."

"Ok," Alex said. He started to play again.

"Whoa, wait, what?"

Alex looked at Luke like he was the one who was being weird.

"I said ok," he said.

"No, but that's the ok you say when you want to say something else but it's not worth it!" Luke said triumphantly. He thought about the context and pointed at Alex in shock.

"You think I like Reggie!" he said. He took a few steps towards Alex, then stepped back. He had no idea what to do with this information.

"You said you don't," Alex said.

"Yeah, but - Alex, dude, do I like Reggie?"

Alex shrugged, staring down at his drums in resignation. He set his sticks aside.

"I can't answer that for you," he said. "All I know is what you look like when you like someone. Not to quote Reggie, but there's... Some oozing." He made a face. "I regret saying that."

"Yeah, but we talked about this, I have chemistry with every-" Luke paused as Alex lifted his hands.

"Julie," Luke listed slowly. "You. Reggie." He sighed.

" _Do_ you like Reggie?" Alex asked.

"I like Julie," Luke said. "Nobody ever says you can like more than one person at a time like that."

"Growing up, nobody ever really said guys could like guys like that, and yet there's a lot of us," Alex pointed out. "Have you processed yet? Am I done being your therapist?"

"I gotta talk to Julie," Luke realised. He poofed away, then remembered why he'd gone to the studio in the first place. He poofed back.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I was going to check on you."

Alex laughed softly. "Thanks."

"No, but... I just spent a long time freaking out about romance to you," Luke said. "Are you - are you doing any better? Do you want that hug now? Dude, tell me I didn't make it worse."

"No, it - it was kind of nice having something else to think about," Alex said. "Just... Don't do it again."

"Sorry," Luke said again. He pointed to the door. "Do you want me to go?"

Alex wrinkled his nose.

"Actually, I'd take that hug now," he admitted. Luke hurried forward to hug his friend tightly.

"Do you think the Molinas would mind if we hung out during dinner?" Alex asked, slightly muffled by Luke's shoulder.

"Dude, Reggie is helping _make_ it," Luke said. "We're fine."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...I don't remember what I promised last time but this chapter has been cut in half, because it got. So long. If I didn't deliver on something, it's coming next time??? Whoops  
> Anyway if you're wondering I don't ship Alex/Luke but I do love some positive exes as friends, for Personal Reasons and also because we never get enough of that in media. so yeah  
> Also on the topic of Luke, I'm ace enough that I cannot tell if I wrote asexual Luke, like... The "my type is people who do my thing" is very much me and I did not realise it for years because it was not a physical type and everybody says "type" like it's a looks thing  
> So maybe on reflection this is ace Luke, or demi. You're welcome  
> Next up: Luke talks to Julie. They both talk to Reggie. Julie gets an important phone call and arranges for the mailing of a letter.


	10. Write It in a Song

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Romantic developments and the return of a major threat, but what we're all really here for is Carlos having a good time.

Even with Julie's family and all three of her bandmates, dinner was unusually subdued. Carlos had to carry most of the conversation, though Reggie was happy to respond. (Mostly, this meant moving random objects, though he did occasionally write actual notes out.) Alex was quiet, leaning against the wall and just watching the others no matter how much Julie tried to coax him over. Luke kept staring at her like he was trying to figure something out. Julie's dad, of course, was still processing everything.

She hoped, anyway. If he was secretly trying to figure out how to make her stop hanging out with ghosts, she didn't know what she'd do. Thankfully, that wasn't her dad's style, so she tried to push the thought from her mind.

"Julie, can I talk to you?" Luke blurted as soon as Julie had finished eating. She looked between him and her dad.

"Can I take care of my dishes?" she asked. She saw her dad almost answer, and could pinpoint the exact moment he realised she was talking to a ghost.

"Right, yeah," Luke said. "But after?"

"Is something wrong?" Julie asked. Had something else gone wrong while Luke and Alex were out in the studio?

"No! I'm pretty sure it's a good thing," he said.

"Pretty sure?" Julie repeated teasingly. Luke shrugged.

"Which one were you talking to?" Carlos asked as he and Julie cleaned up.

"Luke," Julie said. "Why?"

"Just curious," Carlos said. "What were you talking about?"

"That's none of your business," Julie said. She rolled her eyes. "Also, I don't know."

"Well, if he mentions me, tell him he should appear on my YouTube channel," Carlos said, passing her his plate to be rinsed.

"You're still doing that?" Julie asked.

"Julie, I'm not about to tell everybody your band is ghosts, but I do have proof ghosts are real, and I already made the channel!"

Julie shook her head fondly as she put the last dish in the dishwasher. She flicked water at Carlos.

"Go _away_ ," she said. "You said you wanted to see if Reggie could play one of your games, right?"

Carlos lit up.

"Bye!" he said as he practically bolted from the room. Julie rolled her eyes and turned back to the sink, only to jump when she saw Luke leaning against the counter.

"Seriously? You couldn't wait three seconds for me to walk back through that doorway?"

"Sorry," Luke said. "But - but it's important!"

At least he seemed excited about whatever it was. That was a good sign. Julie folded her arms, watching him closely.

"Go ahead, Luke," Julie prompted when he didn't talk.

"Alex says I have a type," Luke said. Julie stared at him.

"Ok, and why was Alex saying this?"

Luke made a face. Julie sighed.

"How is it you are so brave when it comes to music, and so afraid of feelings?" she asked. "Do you want to write it in a song or something?"

It was an out, a chance for them to keep on going as they had been, and by the look on Luke's face he knew she'd guessed what he was trying to say.

"No, it's fine," he said. "I probably took too long already."

That was a weird thing to say, since they'd really only known each other for a couple of months. A small, hopeful part of Julie thought maybe it wasn't just her on Luke's list of people to talk to, and wasn't that a new development?

"Ok," Julie said softly. "I'm listening."

"Julie, you're... Amazing." Julie smiled. "I mean, when you sing it's like..." Luke shook his head, looking awed by the thought, and Julie bit her lip.

"I never want to stop making music with you," he said. "I, um... I really like you. As a friend, but in other ways too."

Julie thought it was a little unfair that Luke was dead, because now it felt like her heart was beating fast enough for both of them.

"I like you, too," she said. She couldn't leave it, though. Luke deserved to know everything. "I just... I also kind of like somebody else?"

Luke's eyes widened.

"Who - Can I ask who?"

Julie tensed, hoping he'd take it well. She couldn't imagine Luke putting a relationship over the band, but the fear was real.

"Reggie," she admitted.

Luke laughed and practically bounced forward, grabbing Julie's shoulders.

"Me, too!" he blurted. He frowned. "Now what?"

Julie gaped at him. She'd wondered, and hoped, and maybe daydreamed a little during dinner, but she hadn't really expected such easy acceptance.

"Julie?"

Julie realised she'd been standing perfectly still for maybe a minute.

"Right! Uh, we should... I mean we should talk to him, right? Unless you don't want to... Involve him?"

 _Involve him_? What was Julie, accomplice to a crime now? She closed her mouth before she could say anything more overtly ridiculous.

"I'd like that," Luke said. He put a hand on her cheek, gazing at her with that same look he'd had when he told her he liked her singing earlier. Julie covered his hand with hers.

"Let's go get Reggie," she said, hanging on to Luke's hand even after he pulled it down. "And I hope you have a good idea to distract Carlos while we talk to him."

Modern video game controls hadn't actually changed much since Reggie was alive, but the graphics were so vastly different it felt like he was relearning a lot. He winced as his character experienced another death-by-falling.

"And Carlos takes the lead!" Carlos exclaimed. "We can say it's because your hands go through the controller sometimes, if you want."

"Nah, I'm ok with you claiming that one," Reggie said. Carlos didn't respond, since he couldn't hear, but that wasn't the point.

"Uh, Reggie?"

Reggie and Carlos turned to see Julie and Luke - well, Reggie saw Luke - behind them.

"Can we talk to you for a minute?" Julie looked nervous, but in that way she got before a show: her eyes were glittering with determination even though she was tense.

"He's finally getting the hang of it!" Carlos exclaimed as his character died a horrible death as well. Carlos had forgotten to pause the game.

"Well, it looks like you'll have to start the level over, so now is a good time!" Julie said.

"If this is about whatever Luke was saying, why couldn't you have a band meeting?"

Julie and Luke exchanged glances, looking mortified. Reggie cocked his head, trying to guess what had them acting so weird. Nothing sprang to mind.

"It's... Not that kind of talk," Julie said. "Carlos, please?"

Carlos eyed her.

"The guys make an appearance on my channel," he said. "In a video of their choice."

"I can't promise that for them!" Julie exclaimed, as Luke said, "Done."

"Yeah, sure, little dude, that sounds like fun," Reggie said. "I bet Alex will be on board, once we get Willie back."

Julie sighed.

"Fine, Luke and Reggie say yes. Ask Alex on your own time, ok?"

"Yes!" Carlos exclaimed as he hopped up and ran out, presumably to track down Alex.

"So what's going on?" Reggie asked. He realised Julie and Luke were holding hands, and had been as long as they'd been standing there.

"Nothing! Not nothing, nothing bad. Because we're talking to you!"

Reggie stared at Julie. Luke winced.

"See, this is why you don't get to make fun of how I approach these things," Luke said. Julie frowned, elbowing him. Reggie smiled as he watched them.

"You remember what we talked about the other day?" Julie asked, letting go of Luke's hand to sit beside Reggie on the couch. He tensed up, his smile fading. They'd started dating, and this was it. They needed to tell him they were just his friends.

"Yeah," Reggie said. Julie took his hands.

"Reggie, look at me," she said. When he did, she looked happy.

She looked the way she had when she first hugged Luke, and the way she had when they'd come back from that alternate timeline. But now, now she was looking at _Reggie,_ not Luke, and he was afraid to guess what that meant.

"I didn't realise it sooner, or I might have said," she said. "But Reggie, I like you too. And Luke..."

"Alex had to talk me through it," Luke admitted, leaning over the back of the couch to drape himself over Reggie. "Probably owe him a lot right now. But I like you. I know you probably don't like guys..."

"Dude, I'm bi, I've had a crush on you for years," Reggie blurted quickly. Julie laughed. Luke looked like Reggie had just smacked him instead the face.

"Oh," he said. "That's good."

Reggie looked at Julie, who looked equal parts delighted and exasperated.

"We wanted to start... Something," Julie said. "Who knows how much dating we can do since most people can't even see you, but... However this ends up working, we wondered if you want to be part of it?"

Reggie couldn't form words. Instead, he flung himself forward, holding Julie close with one arm and wrapping the other around Luke when he joined.

"That's a yes, right?" Luke asked.

"Definitely," Reggie said.

Julie had just pulled away, saying something about figuring out what, exactly, they were doing, when her phone rang.

"We'll wait," Reggie said cheerfully before Luke could encourage her to ignore it. He settled back, leaning his head against Luke, and Luke had to admit this was a pretty good way to wait. He kept his arm around Reggie's waist and watched as Julie answered her phone. Luke's ego was soothed slightly by the look of annoyance on her face.

"Hey, Nick!" Luke wouldn't have been able to tell Julie had been interrupted in an important conversation from her tone. She sounded loud and awkward, yes, but from what Luke knew, Nick was used to that.

"Why's he calling?" Luke grumbled.

"Dude, are you seriously jealous right now?" Reggie asked.

"I'm not! He's just... Too sweet."

"Yeah, that makes sense," Reggie said. "Am I not sweet at all?"

"You're awesome," Luke said quietly. "I just... I guess I was excited to talk about this."

Julie looked up at them, smiling at her friends. Boyfriends? Were Luke and Reggie her boyfriends now? Why couldn't Nick have called tomorrow?

"Be quiet," she hissed, the effect ruined by the fondness in her eyes. "Not you, Nick. It's, uh... Carlos. My brother. Always talking."

Reggie snorted. Julie made a face at him.

"Oh, Nick, I really..." Julie grimaced. "Look, it's been really busy over here, the band is working on a new... Project. And we've really been bonding."

"Bonding?" Reggie repeated. Julie kicked him lightly as Luke and Reggie laughed.

"I know, I wanted to hang out sometime," Julie said.

Reggie sat up straight. Luke frowned at the sudden loss of Reggie's warmth at his side.

"Ask him to mail the letter!" he said.

"What? No!" Julie rolled her eyes. "One second, Nick." She covered her phone with her hand.

"I'm not _using_ him," she said. "He doesn't even know about ghosts."

"Caleb won't suspect!" Reggie said brightly.

"That's actually a good idea," Luke said. "If I was Caleb, I'd expect a family member, or somebody related to Flynn."

"Yeah, the only person less likely to do this for you is Carrie," Reggie said.

"Carrie's about the only one who's deserves it," Julie said tartly. Then she sighed. "I don't mean that."

"Bobby might," Luke mused. Julie rolled her eyes.

"We are not using this as an elaborate revenge scheme, the whole point is to stay _away_ from Caleb." She looked at her phone and sighed.

"Sorry, Nick, I had to talk to somebody," she said. "I really -"

Julie broke off. She stared at Luke and Reggie like they were somehow supposed to provide insight on this conversation they couldn't hear.

"That's so sweet, but really..."

Nick kept talking.

Finally Julie smiled ruefully.

"Ok, maybe I have something you could do for me," she said. "To free up time, of course! So we can hang out."

Luke was impressed, and slightly terrified. Her lie voice was faint, for once.

"It's just a letter I have to send, but I have to go find a mailbox, and I don't have any stamps, and we've got so much to do for the band tomorrow, too," Julie rambled. Now she sounded like the bad liar Luke knew and loved.

"Did Nick just volunteer for the thing I said he should do?" Reggie whispered. Luke shrugged.

"Cool!" Reggie said.

"Thank you so much, I'll give it to you tomorrow, and then we could hang out when my rehearsal is done tomorrow?"

"Wait, what?" Luke asked.

"I promised!" Julie whispered. "We're using him, Luke, this is the least I can do."

Luke grimaced, but he understood. Reggie patted his back sympathetically as Julie said her goodbyes.

Julie moaned as soon as she hung up.

"I'm a terrible person," she said. "But it's fine, right? He volunteered. He said, if he could help me get anything done, so I could clear my schedule. So it's fine?"

Reggie shrugged.

"I think it is," he said. "I mean, probably we shouldn't ask people to get involved in this Caleb stuff when they don't know what's going on, but also I'm not even really sure who Nick is, and I spend all my time with you guys. Caleb probably has no idea."

Julie groaned again.

"It's so bad," she said. Then she frowned. "Wait, did I never mention Nick?"

"I'm pretty sure he's the guy from your school Luke was complaining about," Reggie said. "I guess Nick doesn't have my spectacular charm."

"You're a spectacle, all right," Julie said, leaning against him with a content sigh. "There's still so much to talk about."

"Yeah," Luke said. "Are we your boyfriends?"

Julie sat up to look at them both.

"Are you?" she asked tentatively. "Is... Can I call you guys that?"

"I'd like that," Reggie said.

"Yeah," Luke said. "Both of you can call me that as much as you like."

Julie laughed softly.

"Somehow, I did not expect my first boyfriends to be two ghosts at once," she said. "And somehow this is the best thing I could have gotten."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, hey, remember Nick? Surprise, that plotline is relevant.  
> Now that our romance is more or less squared away, communication about expectations and boundaries not withstanding, we get to be walloped in the face by main plot once more. Good luck  
> Next up: Not-Nick plays mailman. We see how Willie is doing.


	11. There Are Rules

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Caleb has a very good day, and absolutely nobody else does.

Caleb didn't miss life, and he certainly didn't miss puberty, but being a teenage boy again was its own sort of delicious if only for the look of absolute trust on the girl's face as she handed him an envelope.

"You don't have to do this," Julie said, probably to assuage her tender conscience.

"I'm happy to," he said. He looked down at the envelope. Dante's family home, long since gone to make way for a defunct strip mall. Cute.

He would have to have a talk with Dante, it seemed. That was disappointing. It had been almost a surprise that Caleb had managed to hang on to free-spirited William as long as he had, but Dante was far better under authority. If he was pushing back against Caleb, who knew how far the rot in his ranks spread.

"Nick?" Julie asked. Caleb glanced up at the sound of his borrowed body's name. There was a pulse in the back of his mind, the feeble fight of a boy wholly unprepared for the supernatural.

"Sorry," he said. "I'll take good care of this. Then I'll meet you after school?"

"Give me about an hour?" Julie asked. "Rehearsal with the guys. It's _so_ hard to schedule."

 _Not for you, it seems._ Not for the first time, Caleb wondered what it was about this lifer that had let not one but three naive ghosts slip his grasp.

"Sounds good," he said. The bell rang, and he rolled his eyes as he left for his last few hours of playing nice.

Willie had been sitting still for three hours. If Caleb didn't give his body anything to do, that was the default, after all. He was starting to daydream about moving, not skateboarding or seeing Alex or any of the big things he'd been wishing for, but just the simple act of walking on his own.

That probably wasn't a good sign.

He had his eyes, though, and they flicked to the side door when Caleb walked in. The boy he was occupying was starting to look sickly, all pale skin and bags under his eyes.

"Dante!" Caleb called. Dante appeared at his side, and a few other ghosts crept out to see what was happening. Genevieve, who'd been rearranging tables to accommodate more people for movie night, paused what she was doing, coming over to stand at Willie's shoulder while she watched.

"Yes?" Dante asked.

"Special delivery," Caleb said, thrusting an envelope at Dante. Dante's eyes widened in alarm, and he dropped the envelope.

"So quick to disown your new friends?" Caleb said. "You've been caught, Dante, there's no hiding it now. You know I can't just let you go."

"Caleb, please, I won't do it again," Dante said, but Caleb shook his head and Dante's jaw snapped shut. If Willie could breathe, he'd have held his breath. He knew the look in Dante's eyes; he'd lost control of himself, just like Willie.

"Dante," Genevieve said tearfully. "What did you _do?"_

"Ah, Genevieve," Caleb said, as though he hadn't known he had an audience. Willie hated that tone. Caleb always knew.

"We're not going to have a problem, too, are we?" Caleb asked.

"No," Genevieve said. She swallowed and straightened her spine, and only Willie knew how deeply her hand dug into his shoulder. "No, sir."

"Good. Your routine tonight before the movie, that's on silks, isn't it? You should go practice. I'd hate for you to fall."

Genevieve, who'd died of a broken neck during a circus show, flinched. Willie wanted to snap at Caleb, or at least he wanted somebody else to stand up for Genevieve.

Nobody did, of course. That was just the kind of thing Caleb said, and everybody else told themselves they'd imagined the threat in his words, every time.

"Don't you all have things to do?" Caleb called out, turning around so he made brief eye contact with every ghost who was watching. Every ghost but Willie, anyway. Caleb knew where Willie stood, and if he wasn't working it was because Caleb didn't want him to.

The other ghosts scurried or poofed away, leaving Caleb, Dante, and Willie alone in the ballroom.

"I'm disappointed in both of you," Caleb said. "I've always relied on you. Your loyalty, your support, your hard work..."

 _The innocent ghosts we put in harm's way,_ Willie thought. Caleb smirked at him, reading Willie's feelings if not his thoughts in his eyes.

"Why don't the two of you go make sure the effects are ready for tonight?" he said. "Movie night is always such a big draw, can't have it be lacklustre just because I've been distracted lately."

Willie and Dante went and did as he said, of course. It was their only option.

"You're sure you want to hang out with Nick? I mean, we're right here!" Luke said.

"He does have a point," Reggie said. Julie smiled at them.

"Look, if nothing else, this will go a lot easier if I can convince Flynn I'm trying to have a social life that isn't just her and a bunch of dead people," Julie said. She took their hands and gave them each a squeeze. "Besides, the way you two were during rehearsal this might as well have been our first date."

"Rehearsals are a pretty good first date," Luke said.

"This is why we never lasted," Alex called. "If you really want to hang out with Julie, you should just tag along and listen to her talk to some guy who can't see you."

Julie tried not to laugh at the affronted look on Luke's face. Reggie looked like he was actually considering it, and she hastily patted him on the shoulder.

"Please don't," she said. "Nick already thinks I'm pretty weird, I don't need ghostly assistance there."

"We can hang out with Alex!" Reggie said cheerfully.

"Great, I'm a third wheel," Alex said as he tightened his snare.

"If you think about it, technically you're a fourth wheel, and that's what makes the cart move," Julie said. The boys all stared at her, and she sighed.

"Yeah, I thought the metaphor was weird as I said it," she admitted. "Luke, stop being overprotective and weird and I will see you in a little bit, all right?"

"Maybe we could come," Reggie said. "I don't mind being around people who can't see us, I'm used to it."

"But I mind, because I hate ignoring you guys," Julie said, hugging him. She turned to Luke and raised her eyebrows.

"Have fun," he said, hugging her.

"Not as much as I would with you guys," Julie said. She caught a glimpse of Alex making a face at his drumset and called, "that includes you!"

"My ego's not that bruised, Julie, but thanks," he said, with a genuine smile.

Nick was in the driveway waiting for her.

"I've got an hour," Julie said. "Since it's a school night. Did you have any plans?"

"There's a movie showing, at this place I know," Nick said.

"Most movies are a little more than an hour," Julie reminded him.

"I don't think that will be a problem," Nick said. He grabbed her arm, and the world went away.

When Julie could feel the world around her again, she stumbled back, looking around frantically. She stood in a large ballroom with a grand staircase on one side and a stage on the other. A screen was hanging across the back of the stage, and she was surrounded by chairs and tables.

"You're not Nick," she said.

"Oh, excellent detective work," the person in Nick's body said. "I think the boy's _ex-girlfriend_ was starting to notice, and yet here you are so wrapped up in your own little problems, you don't even realise your friend's been possessed."

"Caleb," Julie said. She turned and ran, weaving through the tables as fast as she could, only to slam into somebody who grabbed her arms a second later.

"Good catch, William," Caleb said.

"Willie," Julie said, staring into his face, hoping to reach her friend. "Willie, you can fight it. For Alex. You know you can!"

His face was empty, but he was crying. Julie's eyes blurred with tears of her own as Willie half-carried her back to Caleb.

"What do you want from me?" Julie snapped.

"I want you to stop undermining me," Caleb said. "You think, just because a few powerful ghosts latched onto you in their infancy, that you can do whatever you want? There are rules to this world, Julie Molina, and it's high time you learn them."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, I do not like Caleb but he sure is a fun narrator to write. I can get real fancy and pretentious up in here, I've missed that.  
> Four chapters left, things are picking up speed. Who will escape to warn our heroes back at the house? What will Caleb do to Julie? How can they hope to defeat Caleb if they don't even know how to make him move on?


	12. Keep Trying, Always

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Caleb's terrible personality comes back to bite him. Freedom is found.

"Why don't you take a seat, Julie?" Caleb said. He pulled out a chair and forced Willie to push her into it. Before Willie could step away, Julie grabbed his hand. He did his best to look at her, meeting her gaze out of the corner of his eyes. She nodded encouragingly.

"Cute," Caleb said scornfully.

Willie's hand twitched, trying to hold onto Julie. Caleb frowned.

"Time to let go, William," he said pointedly. Willie had to step away, but he managed to cling to Julie's hand for a second. When they lost contact, his arm dropped like a stone.

"What are you going to do?" Julie asked.

"It's not what I'll do, Julie, it's what you will. Release the boys to me."

Julie actually laughed in disbelief. Willie was kind of impressed.

"You're the only one keeping anybody against their will, here," she said. "They're my band. There's no releasing."

"The _only_ thing that could have broken my hold on them that night was a prior claim, now let it go!" Caleb snapped.

Willie stared at him. Maybe it was just that the body he was in wasn't doing well, but he seemed tired. Something in the way Caleb held himself was off, like the tension of a long day at a terrible job.

Julie glared up at Caleb, who took a deep breath, clearly trying to calm himself.

"How did you do it, Julie? A lifer, binding three powerful ghosts to her, that's... Impressive."

"Unlike you, I don't have to mind control people to keep them in my life," Julie said.

Caleb frowned, staring at Julie like she was a puzzle with a missing piece.

Willie took the chance to look at Julie, straining his eyes to meet hers. She tried for a smile, and for a second Willie almost managed to return it.

"Genevieve!" Caleb called finally, startling Willie and Julie. "Why don't you make sure our guest of honor has a front-row seat for movie night?"

Willie was so horrified he managed to turn his head to look at Genevieve. Front-row seats were for ghosts, since Caleb's movies always featured dangerous stunts like his _Titanic_ floods. It was meant to show ghosts how cool the afterlife could be. It would kill a lifer.

It would kill _Julie._

"No," Genevieve said. Willie closed his eyes, the closest to a sigh of relief he could come.

"Then somebody else will!" Caleb snapped. "Avery!"

The ghost in question walked up behind Genevieve and stopped, staring at Caleb. Slowly, more and more ghosts joined them, until all Caleb's club performers and techs were gathered behind Julie's chair, eyeing Caleb silently.

"What, the afterlife is so boring you've decided you'd all like to leave it in the most painful way possible?" Caleb demanded. Julie looked around with wide eyes. Willie realised she probably couldn't see what was happening.

"You can't do anything to me," Caleb continued. "I _own_ you all!"

"Then stamp us," Genevieve said. "And when we're gone, you'll never share the spotlight again. Of course, you'll have to figure out how to run the spot yourself, work the flyrail, play the music, even choreograph your own dances."

"I can _make_ you do anything I please," Caleb hissed.

One of the ghosts started to walk forward, clearly fighting every step. Genevieve grabbed his arm, only to hiss as her hand fell back to her side. Around Willie, more and more ghosts were were starting to move in reluctant fits and starts.

Caleb was sweating. Willie wiggled his toes tentatively, then took a step back.

Caleb couldn't handle all of them, not completely.

"You can't do this forever, Caleb," Genevieve said as Caleb forced her to her knees. "If you could I wouldn't be saying a word right now."

"You can't escape me," Caleb snarled again.

"But now you're bound to people who will never trust you again!"

Somebody tapped Willie's shoulder. It was Dante.

"Go," he ground out.

"But... Everybody else," Willie protested. It felt good to talk again, even under the circumstances.

"You have somebody to go to," Dante said. "That's how they made it, right? Your boyfriend and his friends?"

_Alex._

Willie nodded, forcing himself towards Julie's chair. It was more of a lurch than a walk, but she grabbed his hands and steadied him before standing up herself.

Caleb was still looking over Genevieve, shouting. Willie tugged Julie up the stairs, his legs moving more smoothly the longer they went.

"No!" Caleb called as they reached the door. Two ghosts poofed in, the anger and fear on their faces at odds with the calm way they grabbed Julie.

"No!" Willie cried, struggling to hold on as Julie thrashed in the ghosts' grips. More ghosts were approaching Willie, but they were having an easier time fighting it.

"Willie," Julie said. "Go home. Get our friends, ok? I trust you."

Every time people trusted Willie, it went wrong.

"No," he said. "Julie, no!"

"Willie, you have to warn them, tell them it's Nick! Please!"

He lost his grip on her fingers. Other ghosts grabbed him as he started to lose control again.

"You have to go," Julie said. "Think of Alex."

He closed his eyes against the tears that threatened to escape. He _was_ thinking of Alex, of how disappointed he'd be that Willie left his friend behind.

"You can do it," Julie said as the ghosts dragged them back down the stairs.

Willie remembered the first time he'd seen Alex, how dramatically Willie had taken off his helmet in the hopes of impressing him, how freaked out Alex had been. He remembered the last time he'd seen Alex, clinging to that kiss thinking he'd never get another one.

Willie really wanted another one.

He tried to poof away, but all it left him with was a sharp pain inside his ribcage. He grimaced and tried again, and this time left the pain reverberating up and down his spine. Caleb wouldn't let him leave, and no amount of love was going to save him.

He reached out to Julie, like a last apology for even trying to leave her.

She reached back.

"Try again," she said as their fingers brushed. "Keep trying, always."

Something inside Willie snapped, a tether he hadn't even noticed holding him down. He was gone from the club, heading for Alex at last.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this house we never have damsels in distress, just people who care about each other saving each other and by extension themselves. Also, uhhh, anybody want some ghost powers?  
> I feel like as we creep toward the end of this my not-so-inner superhero nerd is coming out to play so like. Hope you like dramatic flashes of light and melodramatic dialogue because that's my jam.  
> Next up, a reunion, and they all have fun storming the castle.


	13. No Idea What I Can Do

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ray's dadly ambitions outstrip his ghost-related abilities. Caleb's ambitions just plain don't pan out. Julie wins the award for "Most Intimidating."

"Look, all I'm saying is it's been an hour and a half, and Julie always says Nick is a good guy, so something probably happened!" Luke's argument would have been more compelling if he hadn't been making it for an hour. Alex was kind of starting to worry about him.

"Dude, it's LA, it's probably just -" Alex broke off mid-reassurance. "Willie?"

Reggie looked between Alex and Luke.

"Wait, why would it be Willie?" he asked. Luke rolled his eyes and gently turned Reggie's head toward the door to the studio, where Willie was standing.

"Willie!" Reggie said, waving.

"Wait, did Caleb send you?" Luke asked warily. Alex wanted to glare at him, but that would require looking away.

"No," Willie said. "No, he - I took my soul back." His face melted from confusion to awe.

"You're here," Alex said. He took a step forward.

"Yeah," Willie said with a smile. Alex had _missed_ that smile.

He crashed into Willie, wrapping his arms around him in the strongest hug he could muster. Willie wound his arms around Alex's neck, pressing his face into Alex's shoulder. Alex knew he was crying, but he was pretty sure nobody in the studio had room to judge, going off the sounds coming from where Reggie and Luke were.

"Are you guys crying for us?" Willie asked, lifting his head to look at the other two ghosts.

"It's just so beautiful," Reggie sniffed.

"We missed you, man," Luke admitted. Alex's arms squeezed a little tighter.

"Look, we don't have time for a lot of this," Willie said, sounding regretful. He pulled away from Alex. "Julie's in trouble."

Reggie fell off the couch. Luke looked like he wasn't sure whether to be proud he'd been right or horrified.

"What happened?" Alex asked. "How do you know?"

"Caleb brought her to the club," Willie said. "He's possessing this kid, and I think Julie called him Nick."

"Wait, he can do that?" Reggie yelped.

"I knew it!" Luke hissed. Alex rolled his eyes.

"No you didn't," he said. "Somebody should get Flynn."

"Somebody should get Ray," Reggie said. "He deserves to know."

Alex wasn't sure Julie would appreciate them dragging her dad into this, but Reggie had a point.

"So we definitely need Flynn, then," he said. "So we don't have to pass notes."

"I'll get Flynn," Luke said. At Alex's look, he shrugged. "At this point she's used to getting ghost notes."

"I'll go get Ray, then," Reggie said. He and Luke poofed out, leaving Alex and Willie alone.

"I'm so sorry, I tried to get Julie out," Willie blurted. "Caleb's losing control at the club, but he can still use us - them." Willie shook his head, like he couldn't believe he'd escaped Caleb.

"What happened?" Alex asked. "What is Caleb going to do to Julie?"

Willie shook his head. "I don't know what he can do," he said. "Nobody will help him willingly, and he doesn't have the power to control everyone at once, not completely. But he was _really_ mad at Julie. He thinks she bound you to her somehow."

"Wait, like... What Caleb did to you?"

"Yeah," Willie said as Reggie poofed back in.

"Julie would never do that," Alex said.

"What's going on? Reggie asked as Ray came running through the doors.

"Ok, how many of you are in here, and where is my daughter?" he demanded.

"We'll tell you later, Reggie," Alex said. "What did you tell him?"

"Just to meet us out here and that Julie was in trouble. Oh, and that we were getting Flynn!"

"This is Julie's dad, right?" Willie asked.

"Yeah," Alex said, opening up a notebook and writing down what they knew of the situation. Ray snatched the paper as soon as Alex set the pen down, and his face paled as he read.

"Where is this club?" he asked.

Luke poofed back in.

"Flynn's coming," he said. "What's going on?"

"We're telling Ray what's happening," Reggie said as Alex scribbled down the address of the club.

As Ray read it, Flynn burst in, breathing heavily.

"Flynn?" Ray looked confused, then stern. "Flynn, you are not coming."

"I'm the one who can see some of the guys, and I can see Caleb," Flynn said, still breathless. She stood up, catching her breath. "Julie is in trouble, so I'm helping."

Ray sighed.

"You'd go there alone, wouldn't you?"

"I know the bus route," Flynn said. "Let's save time and carpool."

"Dad, what's going on?"

Carlos poked his head into the studio. Ray looked like he was biting back a curse.

"Carlos, I need you to go inside, I'm calling _tía_ Victoria to look after you for a bit."

"Why?" Carlos looked from his dad to Flynn. "Did something happen?"

"Everything's gonna be fine," Flynn said. "Seriously, shoo."

Carlos looked like he could tell something was seriously wrong, but Ray put his hand on his son's shoulder.

"Please, _mijo,_ " he said. "I need you to go inside."

With a last look back, Carlos left. Ray pulled out his phone.

"Victoria, I need you to watch Carlos," Ray said. He paused.

"I can guarantee you all ghosts will be gone from the house," he said wryly.

"Do I want to know?" Willie asked quietly.

"Reggie," said Alex, Luke, and Flynn in unison.

"No, no, no, Victoria, _por favor, ¡eschúchame!"_ Ray pinched his nose and took a breath. "Julie is in trouble."

He put his phone away a second later.

"She'll be right over," he said. "Let's go."

"Willie, you're riding with us," Flynn said, grabbing his arm. Alex had forgotten she could do that.

"But -" Willie looked at Alex.

"Alex can come, oh my god, calm down," Flynn said. "But you are telling me everything that happened."

"We'll meet you there," Luke said.

Alex remembered how angry and off-kilter he'd felt with Willie gone. He didn't think Luke and Reggie would do anything too stupid, but he didn't want them to be alone.

"No, stay with us," Alex said. "We don't want somebody to see you before we get there."

"Keeping an eye on us?" Luke asked softly as the ghosts piled into the backseat. Alex realised once they were in that none of them had been in a car since they were alive.

"Maybe," Alex said. "Returning a favour."

Reggie buckled his seatbelt. Everyone took a moment to stare at him.

"Right," Ray said, clearly deciding that asking a ghost why he'd buckled up was going to be a far longer conversation than they had time for. "Here we go. Off to fight ghosts."

He muttered something in Spanish as they tore out of the driveway and down the road.

Like some kind of miracle, the LA traffic was the best Alex had ever seen it. Flynn and Ray scrambled out of the car when they reached the hotel, and Alex and the other ghosts poofed right to the door.

The doorman eyed Flynn and Ray sceptically.

"Do you have a reservation?"

"Didn't need one when you let me walk in the other night," Flynn said. "Do you want me to tell your boss you're taking bribes from adult men to let teenage girls in? I don't have to tell them the man was an evil ghost."

The doorman paled dramatically.

"What do you want?" he hissed.

"We need in," Flynn said. "Now."

"She kind of scares me," Reggie whispered loudly. Flynn smirked as the doorman held the door open for them.

"Nice of you," she said, grabbing a bewildered Ray by the wrist and dragging him inside.

"What was that about?" Ray asked.

"Caleb knew Luke and I came to the club, and he let us in, and I figured since it's the same doorman on duty that might work," Flynn said.

"Well," Ray said. "At least this wasn't a _different_ illicit and dangerous outing you were talking about."

Flynn and Luke led them down the halls of the hotel, breaking into a run whenever nobody was around. Alex noticed Willie was trailing behind.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

Willie tried to smile at him. It failed before it ever reached his eyes.

"I just shouldn't have left her," he said.

"No," Alex said. "No, Willie, you came for help. You probably just saved her."

"I just -"

"Oh my god!" Flynn interrupted them, skidding to a halt just outside the ballroom doors. There was a boy crumpled to the ground outside.

"Is that Nick?" Luke asked.

"Caleb," Willie said, and Flynn took a step back.

"He looks really bad," Flynn said. Ray knelt beside Nick's body. "Wait, don't! It's Caleb in there!"

Caleb groaned. Ray glanced at Flynn in concern, but his dad instincts seemed to win out, and he steadied Caleb as he sat up.

"Mr Molina?" he said in a dry, creaky voice. Alex and Willie exchanged glances.

"We know it's you," Flynn said with a quavering voice. "Don't even try."

"Flynn? What - where am I?"

Reggie leaned over to Willie.

"Did Caleb ever get Flynn's name?"

Willie shrugged.

"He might have, but I didn't think he cared," he said.

"Nick?" Flynn said warily. "What song did you play for the last showings in music?"

He stared at her.

"It was improv," he said. "On my guitar."

"Oh my god, it's Nick," Flynn said, and now she was on the ground next to Nick and Ray.

"Guys, we have to get Julie," Luke said. Nick stared at the ghosts standing over him.

"Why is Julie's Swedish hologram band here?"

"You can _see them?_ All of them?" Flynn scowled. "This is not fair."

"Probably a leftover from Caleb," Willie said. "Considering the other side effects of possession, I don't think you're missing much."

"Side effects?" Flynn asked as Ray helped Nick to his feet.

Willie shrugged, looking uncomfortable. Now Alex could get a good look at Nick, he could see what Willie meant already. The living boy was incredibly pale, except for the dark circles under his eyes. One eye was bloodshot, his hair was matted with sweat, and there was a little crust of blood around his nostrils.

"Living body, dead soul," Willie said. "If it goes on for too long, you start to shut down."

"Oh my god," Flynn said.

"That - that sounds bad," Nick said. "Also, weird. Dead souls? What is going on?"

"You need to get somewhere safe," Ray said. "Can you - no, I shouldn't ask you to walk. Flynn, help him out?"

"But Julie -" Flynn protested.

"Flynn, we will get her," Ray said. "You helped me get here, and now you need to help Nick out."

Flynn looked at Reggie and Willie.

"We got this," Reggie said with a shaky smile. "We'd never let anything happen to Julie."

"Ok," Flynn said. "Ok." She let Nick lean on her and helped him back down the hall.

"Wait, what's going on with Julie?" Nick asked before they turned the corner.

"So... If Caleb isn't possessing Nick anymore," Reggie asked as Ray led the way into the ballroom, "then why? Where is he now?"

Alex didn't have an answer for him.

The ballroom was empty, with overturned chairs and tables serving as the only testament to the scene Willie had left earlier. Julie was bracing herself against the stair railing, breathing heavily.

"Julie!" Ray called, hurrying down the stairs. Luke and Reggie poofed to her side. Alex and Willie drew to a halt just behind Ray as the man reached out to Julie.

Her head lifted. She was panting, like a panic attack, and her eyes were wide and fearful.

"Julie?" Reggie asked. Julie looked over at him and Luke, then squeezed her eyes shut.

"I'm fine," she said, then she shook her head. "No. No, get out!"

Purple smoke roared from her mouth, and Alex and the others stumbled back as the smoke formed into Caleb. Julie swayed, and Luke and Reggie caught her.

"Hey, guys," she said, sounding dazed.

"Hey," Reggie said.

"What _was_ that?" Luke asked. "Were you - did he -"

"Clearly he's getting tired," Julie said, standing up. She looked at her dad.

"You guys brought my dad?" she demanded.

"You expect me to stay behind when my daughter is in trouble, what kind of dad do you think I am?" Ray asked.

"Enough!" Caleb cried. Alex thought he might have been more upset about being ignored than he was about being evicted from Julie's body. "How did you do that?"

"Pretty sure you're losing it, Caleb," Julie said. "You might want to quit and let everybody go while you can."

"No," Caleb said. He was sweating. Alex hadn't known they could still do that after death. "No, you did something. What did you do?"

"It's my body," Julie growled. "Now let all these ghosts go."

"Where are they, anyway?" Reggie asked.

"Caleb trapped them in the dressing rooms," Julie said. "He can't control enough at a time to get anything done, though."

"Good," Alex said. "Julie's right, let them go. You can't fight all of us." He stepped forward, in front of Willie.

"You have no idea what I can do," Caleb snapped. "I could stamp every ghost in this club, you pests included, and all I'd have to do then is wait."

As if to demonstrate, he lunged at Luke and Reggie.

Alex and Willie cried out. Julie seized her boyfriends' hands and hauled them behind her. A bright light unfurled from her, and like a strobe effect Caleb seemed to slow down, reaching for Julie. He touched her arm, and the light slammed into him, sending him skidding away and blinding Alex momentarily.

When the spots were gone from his eyes, Caleb was sprawled on the floor by the edge of the stage, staring at Julie with horror in his eyes.

"Julie?" Ray asked in the shocked silence. "What was that?"

Julie shook her head.

"I don't know," she said.

"My guess is, neither does Caleb," Willie said. He poofed across the room, blocking Caleb as he tried to scramble away.

"This feels really satisfying, actually," Willie said, looking down at Caleb on the floor. Julie and the others joined him, even a very confused Ray.

"I always thought lifers with magic was a myth," Caleb said. "I see it was never the boys I really wanted."

"It's really hard to seem intimidating and powerful when you're on the floor because of a bunch of teenagers," Julie said. She squatted down to look at Caleb on his level. Reggie touched her shoulder and Luke shuffled closer to her, like they thought Caleb might have something else up his sleeve.

"Let the ghosts go," Julie said. "Last chance."

She didn't say an 'or what' but somehow Alex thought she'd come up with something. For all he knew, she could force Caleb to move on.

"No," Caleb said. "No. You owe me still."

Julie reached up to touch Reggie's hand. Reggie flipped his hand over and squeezed her fingers.

"Julie, what's going on? What are - what did the ghosts say?" Ray looked around like he thought if he tried hard enough the ghosts would appear to him. Alex had to admire his stubbornness.

"We owe Caleb a favour," Julie said. "So I'm listening."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did warn you all about my blatant superhero inspiration. Anyway, Julie deserves melodramatic ghost powers.  
> Not sure if holding hands with loved ones to repel danger is a cliche, I think it might classify, but also I do not care because it's the kind of content we deserve to see repeated.  
> Also I've committed to "the club is in a hotel" just because. Less vague nonsense, I guess, you're welcome  
> Next: Caleb finally collects his debt. I continue my streak of bittersweet resolutions, but at least this time nobody dies.


	14. You Have Your Favour

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Caleb tries to get what he wants. Julie and her friends get to breathe. Willie goes home.

Julie waited for Caleb's favour. Her calves were starting to ache from the squat she was in, but she carefully did not think about that so Caleb wouldn't notice.

"Stop fighting me," Caleb said. "You didn't even know you had this power until now. I could help you learn more -"

"No. If I want to learn about this stuff, I'll do it without you," Julie said. "You wanted a favour, not a deal. And we don't owe you _that_ much. You killed my friends."

"They would have died anyway," Caleb scoffed.

"And that's the only reason we're even having this conversation," Julie said. She glanced up at her dad, who looked equal parts bewildered and horrified. She probably had a lot more explaining to do when they got home.

"Fine," Caleb said. "You leave me in peace. No more stealing my people."

"I never stole anybody," Julie said. "You lost Willie because you were a huge jerk who used him to kidnap his boyfriend and then you mind controlled him when you didn't get your way. I had nothing to do with that."

Caleb curled his lip, but he didn't argue with her. Whatever these weird powers were Julie had, it was kind of nice that they made somebody like Caleb listen to her

"You leave for now, then," Caleb said. "The only ghost you get is Willie. A truce."

"For now?" Julie glanced up at her friends. None of them looked pleased by the idea. After working with Dante, it felt wrong to just leave him there. And Julie probably wouldn't even be there if it hadn't been for the other club ghosts, as far as she could tell.

"A year," Caleb said. "I'll treat them better! Give them more freedom!"

"Like we believe that," Alex scoffed.

"Willie?" Julie asked.

He shrugged, looking uncomfortable.

"He was ok, before," Willie said. "But I don't think that's because he never did anything bad. We all just... Told ourselves it was ok."

"Julie, what's going on?" her dad asked again.

Julie swallowed.

"We have to give Caleb something he wants. It's some kind of... Magic rule. Ghost magic, I don't know. And he's asking us to leave all the other ghosts at the club behind. For a year."

"A year?" Julie's dad knelt beside her, and Caleb had to scramble out of the way of her dad's knees. Julies dad put an arm around her.

"Time for you to really figure things out, then," he said softly. " _Mija,_ I don't want you in danger. But you won't let this rest until you feel like you've helped them, will you?"

"No," Julie admitted. "How could I _leave_ them? They saved my life."

"Can Caleb do anything to them in the year?"

Julie's eyes widened.

"You can't stamp them," she said quickly. "If we say yes, and we leave you alone, you can't stamp anybody."

"Now who's making deals?" Caleb sneered.

"Do you want this favour or not?" Julie snapped. "You have to promise me. You won't hurt a single ghost. Or a lifer."

She couldn't say how she knew a promise would work. Julie couldn't say how any of this worked, though, so she was willing to trust her gut.

"Fine," Caleb said through gritted teeth. "You leave me for a year, and I can't hurt anyone. When the year's up, all deals are off."

Julie looked around. Her dad was watching her, worried. Alex was still a step in front of Willie, glaring down at Caleb, and Willie met Julie's eyes. He nodded with a sad smile.

She looked behind her. Reggie stood at one shoulder, Luke at the other, and they both looked nervous. Reggie's fingers twitched in her grasp.

"What do you think?" she asked them.

"Now or in a year, we can still take Caleb," Luke said tightly.

"It's up to you and Willie," Reggie said.

Julie understood what he meant, but she wasn't sure he was right.

"It's up to them," she said. "Dante. The ghost who stood up for me. All of them."

"You can't exactly take a poll of ghosts you can't even see," Caleb said.

"So one of the guys will translate," Julie said. "Let them out."

"I'm not going to do whatever you want," Caleb snapped.

"Then I'll get them," Willie said. "I know how you keep ghosts in one place."

Caleb glared as Willie poofed away. He returned a minute later and gestured to the space next to him.

"Julie, this is Genevieve," he said. He jerked his head to his other side. "I guess you've met Dante."

"It's nice to meet you," Julie said to Genevieve. "And I'm glad you're ok, Dante. I'm really sorry about what happened."

Willie smiled.

"It's ok," he said for Dante. "You didn't know."

Julie filled them in on what Caleb was asking, and why she had to give him something. Willie was quiet for a while, looking from side to side like he was following a conversation.

"Genevieve says it's all right," he said. "She says Caleb and the others can work out a truce of their own."

"Dante?" Julie asked, eyes lingering on where she knew he stood.

"He's ok with it," Willie said. "It's not great. Nobody's happy. But they say they're ok, and they don't want Caleb to have anything left to hold over us."

"Ok," Julie said. She stood finally, barely holding back a groan as her legs finally relaxed. She was still holding Reggie's hand, and Luke grabbed her free hand.

"You have your favour, Caleb. A free year, as long as you don't hurt anybody," Julie said. "And we'll know if you break your promise."

Caleb stood on shaking legs.

"Deal," he said. "Now get out."

"Happy to," Julie said, and she led her dad and her ghosts out of the hotel as fast as she could.

Once she was far enough from the ballroom, she turned to the guys with wide eyes.

"Oh my god, what did I just do?" she blurted.

Luke laughed.

"Oh, phew, you're still you," Reggie said. "That was really cool in there, Julie, but also kind of scary?"

"Right? Where did that come from? That whoosh, and then all that stuff I was saying about what we owed Caleb as though I actually knew what I was talking about?"

Now that Julie had the chance to notice, her heart was beating triple time. She let go of Luke and Reggie's hands to hug her dad as they walked.

"Thank you," she said to him.

"I don't think I came in as useful as I'd hoped," he said ruefully. Ahead of them, Luke slung an arm over Reggie's shoulder, knocking their heads together gently. Alex and Willie were shoulder to shoulder, talking quietly.

"You really helped," Julie said. "I know everything about this was awful. Thank you."

"I couldn't leave you," her dad said. "I just had to... Fumble through the rest of it."

"Oh my god, Nick, what happened to Nick?" Julie blurted.

"Oh, Flynn's got him!" Reggie said.

"Flynn's here?"

"I asked her to take care of Nick," Julie's dad said. "I wanted her safe, and he wasn't going to be able to get out alone."

Julie breathed a sigh of relief.

"You're the best," she said. "Is he all right? He looked awful when Caleb got out of him."

"He'll get better," Willie said. "Probably should get him to the hospital, though."

Julie walked faster.

Flynn and Nick were were leaning against Julie's dad's car, Flynn helping Nick stay upright. When she saw Julie, she ran towards her, nearly dropping Nick to the pavement.

"Oh my god, what happened? Are you all right?"

"It was so weird, Flynn, I think maybe I have magic powers?"

"Wait, so more than just the whole..." Flynn waved at Reggie.

"Yeah, it was like... This light? Caleb wanted to stamp Luke and Reggie again, and then I think I threw him across the room."

Flynn gaped at her.

"Right?" Julie said. She looked at Nick, remembering those few minutes of sickening wrongness when Caleb had tried to possess her. He'd been living like that for who knew how long.

"How are you?"

"From the way everybody was talking when they found me, I think I should be asking you that," Nick said. His voice sounded awful.

"Believe me, I'm ok," Julie said. She wouldn't go _further_ than ok at the moment, but she was ok. Nick, on the other hand, looked ready to collapse.

"I should have given you kids my keys," Ray said regretfully, ushering Julie, Flynn, and Nick into his car.

"I'm gonna go back the ghost way," Willie said, eyeing the nearly full car. "Since at least two of you can touch me, it'd be a little squished."

"I'm with Willie," Alex said, which didn't surprise Julie.

"I think we're probably going to get Nick to the hospital," Julie said, eyeing the front seat where he sat, still looking kind of lost. "It might be a while."

"That's ok," Alex said. "We could... Probably use some time alone?" The last part was a question directed to Willie, who smiled.

"If it looks like we'll take a long time, we'll let you know," Julie said. "I mean, Reggie or Luke can? If... You're coming?"

It felt like a weird thing to be self-conscious about, after the entire evening had gone so wildly out of control, but here she was.

"Yeah, we can come!" Reggie said.

"Don't want to leave you," Luke added.

"No, that would be awful. Terrible boyfriend material," Reggie said.

"Yeah, we're both supportive and helpful, it's why you're lucky to have us," Luke said with a teasing smile. Julie laughed.

"Wait, when did - what's that about?" Willie asked Alex quietly, pointing between Reggie, Luke, and Julie.

"Let's go home, I'll fill you in," Alex said. He hugged Julie, who motioned frantically to Willie until he joined. Then they poofed back to the house, and Julie finally got in the car.

Reggie and Luke both peered into the backseat, at the small middle seat between Julie and Flynn. They suddenly seemed to have misgivings about their plan.

"Is something wrong?" Julie's dad asked, noticing that she still had her door open.

"Nope," Julie said, sliding into the middle seat and patting the slightly wider space beside her.

"You're ghosts, Reggie, you'll be fine," Flynn said. "Also, there were four of you in the backseat on the way over."

Julie grinned at the image. "They all rode with you?"

Flynn shrugged.

"We had to get the details from Willie. Would you two get in already?"

Luke and Reggie climbed over each other like puppies, and ended up squished close to Julie when the door closed.

"Hi," Reggie said in Julie's ear. Julie burst into giggles. It wasn't even funny, but laughter felt like a better response than any of her other options.

"You're so weird," Flynn said, wrapping her arm around Julie and pulling her close.

They held off on most of the conversations until they reached the hospital. The nurses were baffled by Nick, since Julie and her dad couldn't exactly tell them how he'd come to be like this. The one saving grace of the situation, if it could even be called that, was that Nick had been looking slightly ill for days, so his condition didn't come from nothing.

Nick's parents had a long, hushed talk with Julie's dad when they arrived. Julie wondered if she should go say anything, but that plan was interrupted by somebody saying her name.

"Julie! _Ay, sobrina,_ first your father tells me you're in trouble, now he calls and you're at the hospital but you're all right? What happened?"

Carlos trailed after their aunt, shrugging at Julie.

"Please don't convince her the hospital is haunted," Luke muttered to Reggie.

"Pfft, at most it would be like one floor, a hospital is a big place. Though I bet there's a lot of ghosts here."

Flynn made a cutting motion at them as Julie let her aunt wrap her up in a hug. Julie breathed in her aunt's familiar scent, and felt her eyes warm with tears.

"I was out with a friend," she said. _Don't lie, don't lie..._ Thankfully, there was a story her dad had already fed to the doctors and nurses, and it was relatively close to the truth. "Nick... Hasn't been feeling well lately, and it got really bad today. We just got stuck and couldn't get home. It's all right."

Carlos eyed her like he could hear the lie. He probably could, Julie knew she wasn't convincing even when working with the truth.

 _Later,_ she mouthed to him.

Her dad joined them.

"Can I talk to him?" Julie asked, pulling away from her aunt.

"Maybe tomorrow, when he's recovered," her dad said. "Among other things, he's dehydrated, anemic... It'll take Nick some time to get back his strength. Talking to him can wait."

"I just... Wanted to say I'm sorry." Julie glanced at _Tía_ Victoria. "I should have noticed something was wrong."

"You couldn't have known," her dad said. "Let's all go home, ok?"

"You ok?" Luke said quietly as they left the hospital.

"Mostly," Julie said.

"Ray's right, you couldn't have known," Luke said.

"You didn't trust him," Julie said.

"I think we both know I was jealous," Luke said. "Which wasn't fair of me, by the way. I think I owe Nick more of an apology than you do."

"Do you think he'll still be able to see us?" Reggie asked.

Luke shrugged. Julie had no idea, either.

"I guess we'll find out," Julie said. There were a lot of things to find out.

Alex and Willie arrived to a quiet, empty studio. This was good, considering everybody else who used it usually was driving home from Caleb's club, but it was still jarring to Willie, since he'd only ever seen the place full of people and sound.

"So," Alex said. He stuffed his hands in his pockets.

Willie couldn't help but laugh.

"I have... No idea what to do now," he admitted, collapsing onto the couch. "Where do I go? What do I do? I don't... It's been decades since I could just... Decide."

Alex cleared his throat, staring at his feet.

"I mean, you could. You could stick around."

Willie's eyes widened. He hadn't even considered what that speech might sound like to Alex.

"Yes, absolutely. I mean, if you want. And if Julie and her dad are ok with it?"

"I mean, I know it's weird, usually people don't move in together until they've actually dated for a long, uninterrupted time, but also people aren't usually ghosts," Alex rambled.

"Yeah, totally, it's not weird."

Willie and Alex paused and looked at each other. Then they burst into laughter.

"I'd really like to stay," Willie said. "With you and your friends."

"They're your friends, too," Alex said.

Willie smiled.

They heard a car outside. When they poofed out to investigate, they saw Julie's brother in the backseat of the departing vehicle.

"I guess Ray called Victoria," Alex said. "Julie's aunt," he explained when he saw Willie didn't know who that was. "And her brother is Carlos. He knows about us, too."

"Wow," Willie said. "I've said it before, but you have a lot of lifer friends."

"Hey, don't look at me, you're the one Flynn can see!"

Alex looked at Willie, his smile fading. Just when Willie was worried enough to ask what was wrong, Alex lifted his hand, touching Willie's cheek.

"I really want to kiss you again," he said.

"Oh, good," Willie said, like an absolute lunatic, and then he kissed Alex in the hopes that he could distract from his terrible uncoolness.

It seemed to work pretty well. Alex pulled him back in for a second one when they were done, anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Clearly, my whole thing is just constantly leaving loose ends so I never have to worry about running out of ideas for stories. I think I just bumped up the number of upcoming big fics in this series to four, not including this one and the first one or any short interludes. Oof.  
> Anyway, the ghost union still has work to do, but nobody is planning on sitting around for a year, and Dante and Genevieve never promised a thing, so there's that. Still a much happier ending than Phantom Singular, overall  
> One last chapter for this one! Tomorrow, Julie and Nick get to talk, and then Julie and her boyfriends finally get a first date (or... Their version of it.) Ava gets a last laugh.


	15. Stuck With Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nick gets the attention he's been lacking, at last. Julie and Luke still don't know how to flirt, but that works for Reggie, honestly. Ava is exactly as shady as always.

It was three days before Nick was allowed visitors, but it finally happened, and Julie went to the hospital straight from school. To her surprise, all four of her ghost housemates met her in the hallway outside Nick's room.

"What are you doing here?" she hissed quietly. She smiled awkwardly at a passing nurse.

"Um, we - well, we..." Alex said.

"I wanted to see how he was," Willie said. "I've only seen possession once before, but..."

Julie wondered what had happened to that other possessed lifer. Nothing good, by the look on Willie's face.

"Yeah, and the three of us are moral support," Luke said. "You know, since you two got hurt by Caleb when he was using Nick's face. So if you need anything, we're here."

"Our squad of loyal ghost boyfriends," Julie said, sharing an amused glance with Willie.

"And we were wondering if Nick could still see us," Reggie added.

"Why would you - Really?" Alex asked as Luke lifted his hands in the universal 'dude, why' gesture.

"What? I'm not going to lie to my girlfriend!" said Reggie, and when he looked at Julie after he seemed so proud of himself that Julie felt a bit of pride too.

"Well, I didn't lie either!" Luke sputtered. Reggie's grin gained a wicked edge, and Julie clapped her hand over her mouth to keep from laughing.

Forcing herself to calm down before any passing hospital staff noticed, she said, "wait out here. Give me a minute, ok?"

"Tell Nick I said hi!" Reggie said.

Julie shook her head fondly as she entered Nick's room.

"Hey!" Nick said. He was alert and upright, with more colour in his face, though he was still hooked up to an IV.

"Hey, Nick," Julie said. "How are you feeling?"

"A lot better," he said. "Kind of wish I could tell my parents why I'm so sick without sounding completely insane? But right now, as long as I get better everybody seems ok with calling me a medical mystery."

"How much did Flynn tell you?" Julie asked hesitantly.

"Probably more than I processed," Nick admitted. "I was possessed by a ghost who wants your band? I got lost pretty quickly after that, but... They're not really Swedish, are they?"

"No," Julie said. "And... I don't really know anything about holograms."

"I had wondered about that," Nick said. Julie laughed.

"The guys are ghosts," Julie said. She did a half-hearted set of jazz hands. "Surprise!"

"So... When I saw them that night, was that because of..." Nick swallowed, his smile dropping. "Of him?"

"Yeah," Julie said. "We think so."

Nick's eyes flicked toward the door to his room. He looked scared. Julie's chest ached with guilt.

"Hey," she said. "Caleb can't hurt you anymore. We kicked his butt."

"Kinda wish I'd seen that," Nick said with a faint smile, jerking his gaze back to her.

Julie rolled her eyes.

"Well, Reggie has been happily staging dramatic reenactments ever since, so I'm sure he'd be willing to help out."

"Reggie," Nick said. "A guy from your band?"

"Our bassist," Julie said, because it would have been weird to tell Nick, of all people, everything Reggie meant to her. Anyway, the fact that Reggie was in her band was nothing small.

Nick looked nervous again. Julie touched his hand gently.

"Look, if you never want to see another ghost again, we'd get it," Julie said. "But the guys were worried about you. I wondered if you'd like to meet them?"

Nick eyed her.

"You want me to?" he asked.

"I like when my friends get along," Julie said. "If... You want to be friends?"

"I'd like that," Nick said. He grinned. "And if you really kicked an evil ghost's butt, being friends with you is probably the safest plan."

He'd meant it as a joke, but Julie frowned, the guilt growing tighter in her chest.

"I'm so sorry I didn't notice," Julie said. "I should have known."

"Julie, my _parents_ didn't notice."

"But I actually _knew_ about ghosts, I knew Caleb was a threat, and I still didn't..." Julie's throat closed up, and she stared down at the floor.

"Julie, we really only started talking this year," Nick said. "I don't think I'd be able to tell the difference if half the guys on the lacrosse team got possessed. You don't have to apologise."

"Somebody should," Julie said quietly.

"Yeah, but I don't think he ever will," Nick said. "I was in his head enough to know that."

Julie wondered how much he remembered, but the distant look on his face told her asking was a bad idea.

"You said I could meet your band?" Nick asked.

"Yeah! And, uh, Willie." Julie wasn't sure if Alex's relatively new outness extended to Nick, so she didn't elaborate on how they knew Willie. "He's a ghost, but he's not a musician."

"Are they out there?" Before Julie could do more than nod, Nick raised his voice and called, "Hey, Julie's band! Come in here!" His voice cracked at the end, but it was nice to know it was getting stronger even if he was using it to be embarrassing.

Luke poked his head in, and Nick jumped at the sight of a head and shoulders passing through the solid door. Julie tried not to smile.

"Come on in," she said, and soon all four ghosts were standing around Nick's room.

"Uh... Hi," Nick said, all previous bravado gone now the ghosts were in front of him.

"So he _can_ still see us!" Reggie said brightly.

"That's Reggie," Julie said. "And Luke. That's Alex, and that's Willie."

Nick stared at Willie.

"You're familiar," he said. Willie shifted his weight nervously.

"I was one of Caleb's ghosts, until that night," he said. Nick flinched at Caleb's name.

"I'm sorry," Nick said. "I bet that sucked."

Willie laughed.

"Yeah, it wasn't great," he said. "You're really doing all right, man?"

Nick nodded. Willie looked as though someone had taken something heavy off his hands.

"Good," he said.

Julie's phone buzzed. Her dad wanted her home.

"I have to go," she told Nick. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

Nick shrugged.

"I like visits from friends," he offered. Julie smiled.

"Good," she said. "Once you're my friend, you're stuck with me."

Alex and Willie went straight back home, but Reggie and Luke followed Julie out of the hospital and onto the bus.

"Stop," Julie laughed as the boys tried to turn the bus ride into a cuddle session. "Guys! You're invisible, remember?" Julie waved awkwardly at the woman sitting across from her, who was staring at her warily, and hastily put her phone up to her ear. Somebody sat down where Reggie was, and he jumped up with a pout.

"Rude," he sniffed.

"I was thinking the three of us could do something," Julie said. She eyed the lifers around them. "But I'm not sure what we could do."

"Yeah, I don't think a dinner date would go too well," Reggie agreed. "Hey, if you have ghost powers, do you think you'd be able to let us eat?"

"That is an excellent point and we should try that sometime," Luke said, hopping up to hug Reggie around the chest, resting his head on Reggie's shoulder. Julie rolled her eyes at them.

"Do either of you have any ideas?"

"Honestly? I just miss making music with you," Luke said. "This whole Caleb thing took up a lot of rehearsal time."

"We could write a song together," Julie said. The weirdest thing about that - the only weird thing - was the idea that Luke and Julie would stop at one. Reggie hugged Luke's arm to his chest, tangling their fingers together. His boyfriend and girlfriend were starting to get that sparkly look in their eyes.

"Yeah, you know that one we were working on? That we used to introduce us to Ray? I had some ideas for lyrics..."

Julie nodded along, looking thrilled.

"Have either of you ever flirted without talking about music?" Reggie asked fondly. Luke and Julie stared at him like they didn't understand the question. Reggie lifted his free hand defensively. "I'm not complaining! I happen to enjoy both serenading and being serenaded."

"Good," Julie said, kicking her legs out. To the other lifers, it was probably just a weird stretch. To Reggie and Luke, she tangled her legs in theirs for a second, taking a moment for subtle contact. "Because you'll have to get used to it."

_Three days ago, evening_

Ava picked her way through the mess of overturned tables and chairs.

"That was glorious," she said. Caleb glared at her. He was still trembling, to Ava's delight.

"Did you enjoy that?" he spat. "You should be more worried. Those kids don't like you very much, either."

"Oh, but I've been so helpful," Ava said. "Even speculated on your unfinished business!"

Caleb froze.

"You wouldn't," he said.

"I considered it, and I did hint, but I was worried," Ava said. "If it was too easy for them, they'd have gotten rid of you before I had the chance to gloat. Much as I want you gone, I happen to be enjoying this."

"You always were a sadist."

"Rich, coming from you," Ava said. "Do you want to know why I'm here, or not?"

"You mean, beyond the opportunity to gloat?" Caleb started to walk away. A few of his ghosts were trickling out from the dressing room, giving both Caleb and Ava a wide berth.

"See, I thought Reggie and Julie broke my Instrument," Ava said, following him. She winked at the cute aerialist, Jennifer or something, who looked revolted. Oh, well, Ava couldn't win them all, and tonight was going so well already. "Then I thought it was you. None of that little escapade would ever have happened if it wasn't for you."

"I'm already quite punished, Ava, if that's what you're here for."

One of Caleb's people was clearing the floor, and tossed a broken centrepiece through Caleb with enough force that it complete t shattered when it hit the ground on his other side. Caleb spread his arms as if to say, 'See?'

"But after that display, I know the truth," Ava said. "Julie has magic and an obscene amount of love. She overloaded my Instrument, and now it won't work for anything short of a certain threshold."

"You want my magic," Caleb realised. "For your experiments?"

"No," Ava said. "So I can make sure little Julie Molina never came near my Instrument at all."

Caleb laughed bitterly.

"You heard what she made me promise," he said. "I can't harm a ghost or a lifer, so unless you plan on turning _little Julie Molina_ into some storybook undead creature -"

"You don't get it, do you? You poor, unimaginative imbecile. There are so many ways to ruin somebody's life, just by making sure somebody else lived."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaand another down.  
> Oof. It's been like...just over a month? I started writing these maybe a few days after I first watched the show and now we're here, holy hell.  
> I for real am gonna take a break in between big fics this time, because I have a hectic weekend coming up and also maybe jury duty? I have a shorter interlude type thing planned, kind of like "Nobody Is" was, so hopefully I'll start getting that up in that time, but definitely don't expect a new big one to start until the first or second week of November  
> Again, I'm squirrelno2 on Tumblr as well, just be aware if you're a minor that I am an adult and don't censor myself on there, though nothing is terribly NSFW, and if upon scrolling through you suspect I might be your dance teacher please do not interact with my Tumblr because that's weird for everybody.


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